No one was hurt, but a Brown Avenue home was heavily damaged, in
a fire at 2:20 p.m. Monday in Bradford Township.

According to Kane-based state police, a state police fire
marshal and Bradford Township Volunteer Fire Chief Dan Burkhouse
are conducting an origin and cause investigation into the blaze,
which caused an estimated $200,000 in damage.

Officials said the 54-by-48 foot wood frame single family house
located at 24 Brown Ave., is owned by Anthony J. Comilla Jr., 66,
and occupied by Comilla, Anthony Comilla III, 40, and Tammy
Comilla, 39.

Burkhouse said the family was displaced and the American Red
Cross has not been contacted at this time. He said the family is
currently staying with other family members.

According to Burkhouse, two occupants were home when the fire
began. He said one occupant was still asleep and was awoke by a
smoke detector on the second level of the house. That occupant
assisted the second occupant on the fourth level and two dogs out
of the building. They then called 911 from a neighbor’s house.

Burkhouse said the Bradford Township Police Department alerted
firefighters of a large amount of smoke in the Interstate Parkway
area.

Firefighters entered the building through an overhead garage
door and man door to find the second level of the house fully
involved in fire, along with heavy heat and smoke.

A second crew extinguished heavy fire that had extended to the
fourth level to a bedroom and bathroom area.

Burkhouse said the investigation will hopefully continue
Wednesday into the cause of the fire. He said the fire seems to be
accidental, but they did not pinpoint the exact cause yet.

Meanwhile, at 4 p.m., Burkhouse said they received a second call
in the 450 block of Interstate Parkway.

The Bradford City, Lewis Run Volunteer and Corydon Township
Volunteer fire departments, which were on stand-by for the Bradford
Township department, started to respond to the second fire.

Burkhouse said since they weren’t far from the second call, he
sent a truck from the first fire that wasn’t being used to the
second fire. The firefighters found the second fire to be just a
dryer vent malfunction, and the other departments remained on
stand-by.

Burkhouse said the last crew left the scene of the first fire at
8:30 p.m. He said four engines, a utility truck and 25 men from the
Bradford Township department responded to the scene. Kane-based
state police and the firefighters were assisted at the scene by the
Bradford Township Police Department.