Cause of West 32nd fire under investigation
Nov. 10—ASHTABULA — A major fire that destroyed building on West 32nd Street on Wednesday rekindled early Thursday morning, said Ashtabula Fire Chief Shawn Gruber.
The fire was called in around 4:50 p.m. on Wednesday and firefighters found smoke coming from 514 West 32nd Street when they arrived on the scene, said Ashtabula Fire Captain Dennis Page.
He said three firefighters entered the basement of the structure, where the blaze started, and worked to extinguish the fire, but came out of the basement and realized the fire had spread to the second and third floors.
"We moved from offensive to defensive," Page said on Wednesday evening.
He said 2,000 gallons a minute were used to fight the fire that caused the building's roof to collapse.
Page said a man and his dog lived in the basement of the building and were safe and out of the structure when firefighters arrived.
Firefighters from Geneva, Saybrook and Ashtabula Township assisted the Ashtabula department during the evening.
Gruber said firefighters remained on the scene until around 11 p.m. Wednesday, He said the rekindle caused firefighters to return early Thursday morning to put more water on the fire to douse some hot spots.
Gruber said the cause of the fire is still under investigation. He said the building will probably need to be torn down because of the extensive damage to the structure.
