Lightning Likely to Blame for Early Morning Fire in Cranberry

This article was written and reported by Patch Editor Jessica Sinichak 

Cranberry Fire Chief Brian Kovac said a lightning strike is the likely culprit behind a fire that heavily damaged a home in the 100-block of Woodbine Drive early Thursday morning. 

Kovac said the ribs, the top floor and the attic of the home were fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived on the scene at about 3:30 a.m. 

Three people inside the home, a mother and two sons, escaped from the home without injury.

Kovac estimated firefighters had the fire under control within 30 minutes. 

In addition to battling the fire, volunteers had another fight to contend with—Mother Nature.  

Besides heavy rain and lightning, Kovac said it began to hail when volunteers arrived at the fire.

“We were getting pounded with hail,” he said. “It was pouring to the point where communications were tough to hear because it was coming down so hard.”

Despite the difficult weather circumstances, Kovac said crews did a great job in knocking out the fire.  

 “I’m very proud of the guys,” he said.

The chief estimated damage to the home, which is uninhabitable, at about $100,000. He said the family does have somewhere to stay in the area.

Firefighters remained on the scene until about 6 a.m. putting out hotspots and helping the family take items from the home, Kovac said. 

While firefighters were putting out the fire on Woodbine, they also got a call for another home struck by lightning, this one in the 100 block of Preserve Valley Drive in Cranberry.

There was only minor damage to that home, Kovac said. Adams Area firefighters handled the call.

Zelienople Fire Department also assisted Cranberry at the Woodbine Fire.