(Lawrenceville, Ga., March 17, 2020) – At 9:31pm, fire personnel responded to a neighbor’s report of a house fire on the 2200 block of Cruse Road, NW in unincorporated Lawrenceville. Several calls to 9-1-1 reported seeing flames and smoke from the roof and cars in the driveway.

Firefighters arrived and reported finding a well involved two-story, single-family residence on a slab. The fire had already vented the roof with flames coming out of the second-floor windows on the front of the house. The first arriving unit worked fast to deploy an attack line with rescue being the priority. Crews attempted to make access through the front door but excessive accumulation of materials prevented safe passage past the foyer area. As additional units arrived, more attack lines were deployed including a 2 ½-inch line that was set up to protect the property next door. With signs of a structural collapse becoming increasingly evident, the Incident Commander had all personnel back out and away from the house. The stabilizing outriggers on the ladder truck were deployed with fireground operations transitioning to defensive tactics. Water turrets on each side of the aerial bucket unloaded large volumes of water on the blaze. The second floor of the structure collapsed at the rear of the house. Contents inside of the residence made it very difficult to get a complete knockdown on the fire. The fire completely destroyed the structure. A backhoe was brought to the scene by the Department of Water Resources to demolish the remnants of the property. Firefighters will spend an extended amount of time at the scene.

Per Battalion-4, the occupants were not at home when the fire started. They arrived during the fire and could confirm that no one was inside of the residence. American Red Cross is providing temporary relief for the family of three adults. Crews continue to cycle through rehab to have their vital signs checked and get rehydrated. 

EQUIPMENT AT THE SCENE INCLUDED: 1-Squad, 4-Engines, 1-Hazmat Truck, 1-Ladder Truck, 1-Air and Light Truck, 1-Medic Unit, 1-Medical Supervisor, 2-Battalion Chiefs, 1-Fire Investigator and 1-PIO. 

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