STEWARTSTOWN, Pa. — Southern Regional Police, along with the Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshall's office, are investigating following a massive fire in Stewartstown Borough early Saturday morning. The fire destroyed the old furniture factory located along the first block of Mill Street.
“It was amazing how fast it spread," said Hannah Sherman, who witnessed the fire early Saturday morning.
Fire crews were first called to Mill Street around 2 a.m. after reports of smoke coming out of the warehouse. Neighbors watched the fire nearby, as first responders throughout our region were called to the scene.
“I said, ‘oh, I see the smoke,’ and then there was some flames," said Sherman. "Then there was the fire. It didn’t take long before it was massive.”
“The flames, from up the street, were higher than the water tower at the time," said Patrick Von Braun, who witnessed the fire. "You could see the smoke, the sky was orange from the fire, and there was a trail of embers.”
Von Braun said some of the embers went over his house, raising concerns on whether to evacuate.
“I told my wife to wake my older son up and get ready, because you don’t know with the wind what’s going to happen," said Von Braun.
Brittany Barnette, the Stewartstown Borough Mayor, told FOX43 the old warehouse was scheduled to be renovated prior to Saturday’s fire.
Authorities believe the fire may be suspicious in nature and have labeled the incident as an arson investigation. Police are asking anyone in Stewartstown Borough with security cameras to check their footage between 1:30 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. for any suspicious activity, including people on foot or suspicious vehicles in the area.
Residents said the collective effort of fire crews across South Central PA kept the fire from spreading any further.
“God bless them," said Sherman. "They saved all the houses and buildings around it.”
Anyone with information is asked to call Southern Regional Police at 717-235-3944.