ARTEMAS, Pa. -- Orleans Volunteer Fire Chief John Clingerman said Thursday's fire at the Columbia Gas Transmission compressor station was the biggest fire he has fought in his 24 years of volunteer fire service.
Clingerman was on the first unit to arrive and was the last to leave, more than 10 hours after fire companies from five counties responded to the 12:30 a.m. incident.
"The flames were every bit of 200 feet into the air and the sky was lit up like it was daylight," said Clingerman, who served as incident commander. Assistant Chief Randy Pyles was in charge of fire operations.
An unidentified Orleans firefighter was injured and taken to a hospital for treatment of chest pains and breathing difficulty, said Clingerman.
The fire in Mann Township prompted evacuation of up to 40 residences in the area and shelters were set up at the Orleans Volunteer Fire Department, located about 5 miles from the scene, and at the Artemas Community Building.
The blaze consumed a 30-by-40-foot metal building; a 40-by-20-foot wooden building; 10 to 12 acres of wooded property; and damaged four vehicles and caused heat damage to five more buildings at the Columbia Gas Transmission site.
More than six dozen volunteer firefighters from Allegany, Bedford, Washington, Morgan and Fulton counties responded upon alert by emergency centers in each of those counties.
Clingerman said Orleans firefighters had just returned from a mutual-aid response for a structure fire in Bedford County when they were alerted to respond to the fire in Artemas.
Shawn Trahan, spokeswoman for Columbia Gas Transmission Co., said the incident is being investigated by the company as well as the federal Department of Transportation, which has oversight of pipelines.
Trahan said the compressor station at Artemas has operated since the 1970s. It has a maximum processing capacity of 572 million cubic feet per day.
"Fortunately, there were no injuries and we were able to work alongside emergency responders to quickly bring the fire under control," she said.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
