House along Route 356 in Allegheny Township destroyed by fire

No one was injured, but a house was destroyed Thursday afternoon in a fire along Route 356 in Allegheny Township.

The fire closed a portion of the road for about six hours as multiple fire departments worked to get the blaze under control. Route 356 reopened about 7:30 p.m.

The fire was initially reported just before 1:30 p.m. at 1652 Route 356 after motorists driving by saw smoke.

“Unfortunately, the structure is a total loss,” said Lee Schumaker, director of public safety for Allegheny Township. “Nobody was hurt; no firefighters were hurt, so we’re fortunate of that.”

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Schumaker said the fire had to be put out using tanker trucks since the house was located in an area without fire hydrants. The fire was contained by about 3 p.m., but officials eventually called in a Greensburg Fire Department crew to use foam to put out the rest of the fire.

A neighbor helped rescue a cat from the burning home, but officials fear at least one dog may have died.

Neighbor Terence Bowser said he saw smoke and rushed over to see if he could help. He saw the cat struggling outside the home and rescued it. He brought it over to a firefighter for help.

“I held it while they put oxygen on it,” Bowser said.

Bowser doesn’t know the homeowners personally but has been their neighbor for about five years.

“You don’t want to see this happen to anyone,” he said as he looked on at the charred remains of the house.

Neighbors and firefighters heard popping sounds come from the house as guns and ammunition burned in the fire.

“He had some firearms and some ammunition, but it wasn’t an issue (for firefighters),” Schumaker said.

No one was home at the time. The homeowners declined to comment at the scene, according to Allegheny Township Police Chief Duane Fisher.