WATERFORD, NY - The Northside Fire Department and Waterford Rescue Squad were dispatched to 100 Vanderwerken Avenue on March 12th for a reported structure fire. The caller reported smoke coming from the third floor of the house.

Waterford Police Department officers quickly arrived on scene and notified the dispatcher that they had heavy smoke showing from the third floor of the building. The Northside fire chief quickly called en route to the scene and the chief requested the Waterford Fire Department to be dispatched.

As the chief arrived on scene, he had heavy smoke pushing from the third floor window area of the building and declared a working structure fire and transmitted the second-alarm. The first arriving engine on scene immediately deployed a one-and-three-quarter inch hand line to the second floor. The Waterford Fire Department's truck company arrived on scene and crews made their way to the third floor window area in the bucket. Firefighters inside the structure notified command that the rear stairwell was blocked, and they could not make it to the attic area from the rear.

As firefighters made their way to the attic area they had a heavy smoke condition with a significant amount of heat, but no visible fire. The Halfmoon-Waterford Fire Department and Boght Community Fire Company quickly arrived on scene. Firefighters inside the attic communicated with members of the truck company out front to conduct a coordinated ventilation of the front windows, as they knew when they popped the windows the fire in the attic would take off and reveal itself. On the signal from the crew inside the structure, firefighters in the truck company broke out the front top attic window and the fire quickly took off, allowing firefighters inside the attic area to quickly knock it down with a hand line.

Firefighters inside of the structure began to conduct overhaul in the attic area and on the second floor as they had additional hotspots showing up on the camera. All of the occupants from the structure were accounted for, and no injuries were reported. Firefighters remained on scene for an extended period of time. Fire Investigators from Saratoga County arrived on scene and began to conduct their investigation into what caused the fire. The house suffered fire, smoke and water damage on the second and third floors. The cause of the fire is under investigation.