Amherst Fire Department Responds to Fire on Pondview Drive

Source: amherstma.gov

Amherst Fire Department responded to a call via 911 on Saturday February 22 at 3:56 a.m., reporting smoke and fire from a neighbor’s house at #8 Pondview Drive in South Amherst. Initially the five on-duty full-time firefighters along with officers from Amherst Police Department, arrived on scene and confirmed that the house, a one-story single-family residence, was on fire. They reported heavy fire in the basement extending though the first floor and into the attic. In addition to a box alarm and recall for all Amherst Firefighters, a second alarm was sounded for mutual aid.

First arriving crews attempted to enter the house to search for occupants but discovered the floor had burned through from the basement below and so were forced to evacuate and continue to fight the fire from the exterior. Initially it was unknown if there was anyone home at the time of the fire, but neighbors were able to contact the owners by cell phone and confirm they were out of town visiting friends. Crews worked for the next two hours to extinguish the blaze. The initial fire attack was hampered by the fact that the first fire hydrant that crews tried to use was covered in a snowbank so they had to shovel it out, then found it was frozen shut, so another hydrant had to be used, which was also frozen shut, but crews were able to force it open. 

The building appears to be a total loss. The Amherst building inspector was on scene, and power and water were shut off to the building by Eversource and the Amherst Water Department. A family of three was displaced by the fire, and is being assisted by the American Red Cross to find temporary housing. 

Amherst Firefighters were assisted on scene by Belchertown Fire, Hadley Fire, Northampton Fire, and Granby ambulance, and the Pelham Fire Department provided station coverage at the Central Fire Station. A firefighter rehab unit was also on scene staffed by the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services. An unrelated EMS call in town during the fire was handled by an ambulance from South County Ambulance service. 

There were no injuries. A domestic cat is believed to have perished in the fire. The cause of the fire is being investigated by the Amherst Fire and Police Departments, and the State fire Marshall’s office, but is not suspicious in nature.