Update (March 23):  According to Appleton Fire Chief Prent Marriner, an investigation by the Fire Marshal’s confirmed that the fire began with an electrical problem in one of the bedrooms at that end of the house. 

APPLETON — Firefighters from five different towns dropped their lives and grabbed their gear Thursday, March 16, in an attempt to help save a home in Appleton. 

No one was home at approximately 11:45 a.m. when a passerby viewed smoke coming from a one story structure at 833 Gurneytown Road. Appleton FD and its automatic mutual aid units – Union and Washington – were alerted to the fire at 11:48 a.m. Hope, Liberty and Searsmont were requested soon after. 

The first firefighters to arrive encountered fire and smoke showing, according to Union Asst. Fire Chief Jesse Thompson. When the first engine arrived, personnel pulled two fire hoses from the truck and started extinguishing the fire. 

“As other guys got here, we started setting up for other operations to knock the fire out,” said Thompson.

Hope and Washington crews relayed water, first from a pond on the Peabody Road, and then from another source closer to the village. Appleton, Union, and Liberty battled the flames, running into a hurdle regarding a double roof. The original roof is metal, and over that roof, someone had built a gable-pitch roof that acted somewhat like a dome.   

“It’s not uncommon,” said Thompson. “Its just, in this case, fire would get up there, making it more difficult to put out.”

Because of this, crews had to tear into the roofs in order to access the space and spray water. 

Liberty, Washington, and Hope were cleared from the scene at 1:30 p.m. Union was cleared at 2:05 p.m.

The American Red Cross was notified of the fire and provided with contact information for the family.

A cause for the fire has yet to be determined. Thompson did not see signs of a generator, nor had he heard of any pets in the home.

Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com