Pocono News Section

Former Car Wash Goes up in Flames

Former Car Wash Goes up in Flames - Monday, January 4, 2010 at 10:00AM EST

Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Monday, Jan 4, 2010 @ 10:00am EST
POTTSVILLE, SCHUYLKILL COUNTY - The bitter cold made it tough for firefighters to save a building. Fire crews rushed to the former Mady's car wash building on Route 61 in Pottsville around midnight.

Pottsville Fire Chief Todd March remarked, "This is not good weather to fight a fire." Fire trucks and salt trucks joined forces to save the flame-engulfed building. Assistant Fire Chief John Wollyung said, "Approximately twenty - thirty foot flames out of the front by a fifty foot area."

And the flames weren't the only problem. Firefighter Mike Riegle explained, "Bitter cold - the ground was freezing up quick - all the gear was froze up."

March added, "People are slipping all over the place. You have water flying all over - of course that makes it worse. Everything is freezing when it hits the ground."

Two fire fighters slipped and fell. One injured a foot, the other hurt an arm or a hand. Both went to a hospital. Meanwhile, other volunteers fought the fire and tried to figure out how it started. March said, "Good chance it could have been a suspicious fire at this point but right now we're not ruling anything in or out."

He added that the building had been empty for at least six months but it still had utilities. March explained, "There was power in the building - so there's a possibility that had something to do with it. Gas might have been connected to the building - we're looking into that." He wasn't sure how long the investigation could take.