The Wilmington Fire Department is investigating after six homes were destroyed in an early evening fire that misplaced three families. The other three homes were vacant.
WILMINGTON: It was just before 5:00 P.M. on Sunday evening when emergency services began receiving calls about a house fire on the East side of Wilmington. Wilmington Fire Department was dispatched to the scene in the 100 block of East 22nd street, just two blocks east of Market Street.
Units still on scene of an earlier working fire involving five row homes
— James Jobes (@jobes106) March 6, 2017
When crews arrived they could see heavy smoke coming from the row of homes, prompting an aggressive attack. Wilmington Fire Department spokesman, James Jobes said, “When officials realized the fire was spreading quickly and the homes were deteriorating, the incident commander began a defensive attack.”
All in all, six homes were damaged in the fire. Five of the homes were condemned by officials with the Wilmington Licensing and Inspections, displacing 12 people from their homes. The American Red Cross is assisting families who could not return to their homes.
Even though it took crews more than two hours to bring the fire completely under control, officials say that crews remained on the scene extinguishing hot spots. Delmarva power was called out during the firefighting efforts to cut the power to the row of homes.
There were no injuries and the cause of the fire is under investigation. The investigation will continue on Monday morning, Jobes said.
