Eight firefighters were treated and released from Akron General Medical Center on July 31 after a hazardous liquid at a New Franklin house fire permeated their gear and gloves.
Four firefighters from New Franklin, two from Coventry Township, one from Green and one from Clinton described a burning sensation caused by a nonflammable liquid used to remove glue in the residents' carpet-installing business.
The blaze, reported about 5:20 p.m., began in the kitchen/office area of the single-family home at 4539 Manchester Road.
A resident returned home to find the fire, which killed three dogs and caused about $50,000 damage, according to a fire department news release. Firefighters were on scene within four minutes of the call.
In the heat, a new shipment of the glue-removing chemical had seeped from cans and into the clothes of the firefighters, said investigating firefighter Don Burroughs.
''Some guys thought they had gotten embers inside their coats, it burned to that point,'' said Burroughs, who was at the scene.
Though firefighters complained of burning and tingling all over their bodies, only hands and knees made contact with the chemical, he said.
Firefighters left the hospital about four hours later.
''If you read the can (of the liquid), it tells you you can clean it with soap and water,'' Burroughs said. ''Given the fact that it had been exposed to high heat at the time, and the guys were working, their pores were open, (but) there wasn't any blistering or anything like that,'' he said.
Crews from Canal Fulton and Lawrence Township also responded to the call. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Distributed by the Associated Press
