At 11:34 p.m. Wednesday, March 10, York County Communications struck box 52-03 on the 400 block of Pumping Station Road in West Manheim Township for a report of a porch on fire. As units began to go en route, police arrived on scene and reported that there was heavy fire to the rear of a duplex, immediately striking the working fire dispatch. Hanover Area Fire & Rescue Engine 79-2 arrived on scene first, with the crew pulling a 200-foot two-inch attack line and beginning a transitional attack. Engine 79-2 knocked down the fire to the rear, then humped the line to the front of the house to make entry with firefighters from Pleasant Hill Volunteer Fire Department. Firefighters encountered high heat and heavy black smoke throughout the duplex, finding that wind had pushed fire throughout the interior of the building. A second alarm assignment was requested by command for manpower, bringing numerous units from Adams and York county. Firefighters knocked down the bulk of the fire and began the tedious work of overhauling the structure, finding numerous pockets of hidden fire. No one was injured in the fire, which was initially reported when a teenaged resident woke to the smell of smoke and awoke his parents, finding fire in bushes to the rear that continued to spread, according to officials. Six people were displaced in the fire, two from one section of the duplex, and four in the other. Firefighters remained on scene until just before 3 in the morning. A Pennsylvania State Fire Marshal is investigating, alongside West Manheim Township Police. Written by Harrison Jones Photography
