Robert Fulton Fire Company was dispatched by Lancaster County-Wide Communications for a barn fire in the area of Pilottown Road and Rigby Road in Fulton Township on Wednesday morning, Dec. 12 at 3:31 a.m.
The fire was first noticed by a motorist traveling to work and 9-1-1 was called. Chief 5-13, Rob Samples responded and reported heavy fire from about two miles out.
Chief 5-13 arrived to find a 60 x 80 foot barn well off and requested a second alarm. The fire was placed under control in about an hour. There were no injuries, no animals lost but numerous bales of hay were destroyed. Damages were estimated at $160,000.
Over 70 firefighters from Lancaster and Chester Counties in Pennsylvania and Cecil and Harford Counties in Maryland responded to assist Robert Fulton. Companies assisting from Lancaster County included Quarryville Station 5-7, and Rawlinsville Station 5-8.
Oxford Fire Company 21 from Chester County, PA. Rising Sun Station 8 and Port Deposit Station 7 from Cecil County, Md. and Darlington Fire Company out of Harford County, Md. EMS was provided by Wakefield Ambulances 5-13 1 & 2 and an Ambulance from Cecil County. Numerous other companies assisted with standbys.
Pennsylvania State Police were called to the scene to investigate. The next day a 19 year-old Lancaster County volunteer firefighter from Robert Fulton Fire Company was charged with setting the barn fire. He has also been charged with two other barn fires and a brush fire that have occurred in recent months in the southern end of Lancaster County.
