PLEASANT VALLEY – An alert neighbor helped save a home from being destroyed by fire on Sunday in Pleasant Valley. The neighbor noticed flames coming from the back of a two-story residence on Albrecht Lane just after 4 p.m. and called 911, prompting the Pleasant Valley Fire Department to rush to the scene.
The residents were not home when the fire broke out.
As the first-arriving firefighters approached, they confronted heavy fire at the house and requested assistance from additional fire departments.
The Pleasant Valley crews quickly set up to battle the fire as firefighters from the Arlington, LaGrange, Union Vale, Roosevelt, East Clinton, West Clinton, and Millbrook Fire Departments began responding to Pleasant Valley. The Stanford Fire Department was requested to respond with a tanker truck but was unable to assemble a crew.
In addition to the raging inferno, firefighters battled 80-degree weather, high humidity, and a roof covered with heavy solar panels while trying to save the house from being burned to its foundation.
With more than 50 professional and volunteer firefighters working, they knocked down the fire within 20 minutes and fully extinguished it shortly after.
One firefighter was transported to a local hospital for treatment of heat-related illness.
“The men and women of our department worked fast to save the home of one of our neighbors,” said Pleasant Valley Fire Chief John Cronk. “I am very thankful for the neighboring departments that responded to our request for assistance, both at the scene and the ones who relocated to our firehouse to respond to any additional calls in the district. It was a difficult fire, but the teamwork made a difference.”
The Dutchess County Fire Investigation Division was called to the location to determine the cause and origin of the fire.
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