Officials believe the fire started in one of the vehicles, said Deputy Chief Bob Rudzinski Sr. Damage estimates are still underway, but two vehicles were destroyed and the department is now looking for a temporary new location for the substation.
The fire took place early Sunday morning, February 2. According to a department press release, an alarm was activated at 00:44 hours and firefighters were dispatched at 00:45 hours. Police officers arrived to find the front of the unmanned station involved with heavy fire. The fire was under control within 45 minutes.
Rudzinski said both trucks at the station, a rescue pumper and a ladder-tower, were destroyed. Any equipment that was stored on the outside of the vehicles, like the hose bed, was also destroyed, as well as anything in the cab areas including a new thermal imaging camera.
The ladders are presumed unusable, but they are getting tested along with equipment that was stored inside the vehicle compartments, Rudzinski said. Some things, such as their Hurst tool, still work and should be salvageable. Rudzinski said it is impossible to say what needs to be replaced, or what the total cost of the damage is, until they finish testing this equipment.
The deputy chief said they've received many offers from departments offering to loan equipment.
Most of the damage to the structure was in the roof and main door areas, and heat and smoke damage to the interior. Rudzinski said a structural engineer recommends that about two thirds of the building's front be torn down, but said other areas can be salvaged. The department is still waiting to hear back from their insurance provider, but belive it will cover the trucks, Rudzinski said.
The department is still up and running out of their main station, and are looking for a temporary location for the substation.
Rudzinski said they have received a great deal of support, including a barbecue thrown by the Radnor Fire Department.
"The guys are a little bit down but we're hanging in there," he said.
According to the department press release, Bill Daywalt, Chief of Fire & Rescue Services, commanded the two-alarm incident with about sixty firefighters. King of Prussia firefighters responded with two engines and a heavy rescue unit. Assistance was provided by Swedeland Volunteer Fire Company, Lower Providence Volunteer Fire Company, Jefferson Volunteer Fire Company and Lafayette Ambulance Squad, as well as the fire police units of King of Prussia Fire, Swedeland Fire, Swedesburg Fire and the Upper Merion Police. The Swedesburg and Bridgeport Volunteer Fire Companies stood-by in the King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company Allendale Road station during the incident to handle additional alarms.
No requests for equipment or services are being sought at this time. King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company proudly protects 30,000 people living in an area of 15 square miles in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
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