Four people escaped unharmed early Wednesday from one side of a burning duplex in Unity, according to Lloydsville fire Chief Brian Schultheis.
Firefighters arrived at the Beatty Village Road home, located just off Route 30, around 4:30 a.m. to find flames shooting from the rear of the structure.
A neighbor called 911 to report the blaze, Schultheis said.
“Fortunately, the neighbor was getting up for work and saw it,” he said.
The fire heavily damaged the duplex primarily on the side that was occupied. The other half was vacant and was damaged in common areas, such as the attic, he said.
“We had a quick knockdown,” Schultheis said, followed by additional work to check for hot spots in the walls of the older home.
The cold temperatures didn’t cause any problems as firefighters extinguished the blaze, and Schultheis said Unity road crews helped out by keeping the street salted.
A state police fire marshal is investigating the cause. It is not believed to be suspicious.
