Pennsylvania Fire Engulfs Warehouse, Drains Town's Water Supply

ZELIENOPLE, Pa. --

A four-alarm fire destroyed a Zelienople auto parts warehouse and forced a mandatory water conservation order for the community Monday morning.

The fire was discovered at about 11:30 p.m. Sunday at the LKQ warehouse after two employees arrived for work.

"The employees showed up and they went inside, didn't see any smoke, started through the building, and they seen a ball of fire," said Assistant Zelienople Fire Chief Rob Reeb.

Flames quickly engulfed the facility and crews from surrounding counties were called in to assist.

When crews arrived, the water supply in Zelienople wasn't large enough to fight the fire.

"Our water plant is producing water, but they were producing water in less amount of time," said borough manager Don Pepe. "They were using more water than we were producing."

By using tankers and a nearby creek, firefighters were able to get enough water but they said there was nothing they could do to save the warehouse.

"The roof collapsed on the building," said Reeb. "It comes down at angles, and it's hard to get in underneath it. You don't want to send people inside."

Fighting the fire drained the borough's water supply. As a result, a mandatory water conservation is in effect for the next 24 to 48 hours.

The water conservation order could last as long as 48 hours. During that time, residents might see spot outages, discolored water or low pressure.

"It's a situation that we can't avoid," said Pepe. "One of those things we're going to have to deal with because of the amount of water needed to be able to fight this fire."

Firefighters estimate at least two-thirds of the warehouse is a total loss, but they said the whole structure might have to be torn down.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

There were no reported injuries.