DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. — A fire broke out at a Dauphin County gun shop and shooting range Saturday afternoon.
According to Dauphin County emergency dispatchers, the call came in around 3:00 p.m. for a reported fire at 717 Armory at 7500 Derry Street in Swatara Township.
Patrick Connaghan has owned the business for seven years and says he could never have imagined anything like this happening.
“One of the customers came out, said to the staff something just didn’t look right in the range and they immediately went into their course of action and from what I’ve been told by the investigators is that the fire engulfed pretty quickly,” Connaghan said.
“This was a fire that was hard to find and there were lots of challenges with the heat and everything,” said Chief Michael Ibberson of the Swatara Fire Department.
Everyone who was inside the business at the time of the fire was able to get out safely.
Connaghan says his staff’s quick thinking potentially saved multiple lives and property.
“Who knows what could’ve happened without how quickly and how well and how above and beyond they went above the normal call of duty,” Connaghan said.
About 100 firefighters responded to the fire, which reached at least three alarms.
Emergency crews from Dauphin, Cumberland, and Lebanon County worked the scene for several hours before getting the fire under control.
Firefighters cut holes in the building’s roof to air out the smoke.
The total cost of damages is not yet known.
Officials say there were no serious injuries.
“We did have one firefighter that suffered heat exhaustion and was treated at the scene and not transported," Ibberson said.
Friends of Connaghan brought food and water to help keep firefighters on their feet.
"Today was just a very unfortunate accident, but the investigators are doing their job and trying to get to the bottom of exactly what happened," Connaghan said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation with Swatara Township Police.
Connaghan says his business will update customers on store hours via social media but will be closed for the foreseeable future.
