by Steve Bradley
A Thanksgiving day fire put a Hoosick Falls family of three out of their 62 High Street home. The call came in just after 5 pm, and firefighters arrived minutes later to the small two story home with fire shooting out the upstairs windows. [private]
After determining no one was in the home and quickly getting water on the fire, damage to the home was mostly kept to the northeast corner. It has been determined the fire began in the area where a pellet stove exhaust exited through the wall of the home.
Firefighters considered it a good stop, especially after the head start the fire had. Some difficulty was experienced getting at the fire because of the ceilings, requiring firefighters to break through to access the spaces between them.
“There was a double ceiling and we had to get up into the spaces between to get at the fire near the roof. Once we got to [the fire], we used foam to put it out.” Jason Harris of the Pittstown Fire Department said. Firefighting foam is used to cool and coat the fuel of the fire, depriving it of oxygen, helping get the fire out faster.
It was undetermined if the house would be rebuilt or possibly declared a total loss.
The Hoosick Falls, Hoosick, North Hoosick, Johnsonville and Pittstown fire departments, along with the Town of Hoosick Rescue Squad and Village of Hoosick Falls Police, responded to the call. Hoosick Falls Building inspector Mark Surdam was also on the scene. The departments’ manpower response to the call was exceptional, with at least 30 first responders leaving their families at home to answer the holiday call.
Authorities on the scene urged the public to be careful with wood or pellet stove installations. If not professionally installed, they urged homeowners to have them inspected. The cost is minor compared to the risk of losing one’s home, or even the lives of family members in a fire.[/private]