Fire department battles two blazes at same time overnight

The New Albany Fire Department responded to two calls at the same time on Union Hill Road a little after 3 a.m. Friday – both believed to be weather-related according to Fire Chief Mark Whiteside.

“We were dispatched overnight to a gas meter on fire at 1022 Union Hill road,” he said. “When the first arriving engine and I reached the scene we noticed a structure on fire at 1006 Union Hill Road as well.”

A Union County sheriff’s deputy was on the scene at 1022 and verified there was a fire at the gas meter and endangering a house.

The house at 1006 is back from the street and fire crews were blocked from entering the driveway due to a line down across the drive and a transformer popping. “We had to pull an extra line a long distance to reach the structure,” Whiteside said.

Crews from New Albany Light, Gas and Water had to dig up gas lines at both locations and clamp off connections to the structures to prevent further damage or danger.

Fighting the fires and securing the gas lines took nearly four hours.

Whiteside said more information may be available later as they were still cleaning up equipment and getting everything ready to be back in service shortly after 7 a.m.

There was rainy weather with lightning here overnight that might have been a factor.

Damage was worst at the end of the house where the gas line entered. At left is where NA LG&W had to dig up and cut the line.