BETHLEHEM, NY - On August 29th at 1:01 P.M., the Elsmere Fire Department, Delmar Fire Department, Town of Bethlehem FAST, and Town of Bethlehem EMS were dispatched to 24 Hoyt Avenue for a confirmed structure fire, with the caller reporting that their kitchen was on fire.

The Bethlehem Police Department quickly arrived in the area and notified the dispatcher that they had a heavy column of smoke visible from the roadway. As officers made their way up towards the structure, they notified the dispatcher of the nearest hydrant location and notified them that they had heavy fire blowing out the rear of the structure and began to evacuate the building.

The first arriving chief on scene notified the dispatcher that they had a Signal 30 working structure fire. Firefighters quickly arrived on scene and deployed a one-and-three-quarter-inch hand line to the front door of the structure. Police were able to confirm that everyone was out of the structure, and all of the pets were evacuated also. Firefighters made their way up the stairs to the second-floor where they encountered a heavy fire condition at the front door. Heavy fire blew up over the back portion of the roof in the rear of the building as the flames had vented out the back door of the building and began to get into the roof area. Firefighters from the Delmar and Elsmere Fire Departments quickly arrived on scene and set up in the front of the building and on the side of the structure. Firefighters made their way to the roof and began to vent the structure.

Additional resources from the Slingerlands Fire Department were dispatched to the scene as they had a full daytime crew in station. Firefighters on the second-floor made an aggressive interior attack, quickly knocking down the heavy fire condition, and additional crews made their way inside of the structure with pike poles and began to pull the ceilings to gain access to any of the remaining fire that may have made its way into the attic area. Firefighters on the roof notified command that the vent hole was cut and they had a slight smoke condition pushing from the roof from the residual below. Firefighters conducted a primary and a secondary search of the structure and notified command that everybody was accounted for.

As firefighters continued to work inside making good progress, firefighters on the exterior portion of the structure secured the utilities. National grid was requested to the scene to secure the power to the building. Firefighters on the second-floor notified command that all of the visible fire was knocked down and they were going to begin to overhaul. Firefighters that made the initial attack came outside, changed their bottles out and made their way back inside of the structure. FAST members secured the perimeter of the structure of all safety hazards and set up near the doorways in case of an emergency.

Firefighters on the second-floor requested a ventilation fan to be set up. Crews continued to overhaul the structure and brought out the family's belongings to the exterior portion of the structure onto a salvage tarp. As firefighters were working, they discovered that they did have extension into the attic area and began to extensively pull the ceilings in the kitchen area. On the exterior portion of the structure, a significant part of the roof where the heavy fire load was became compromised. Firefighters were able to extinguish the extension into the attic area.

Command requested the North Bethlehem Fire Department to the scene with their rehab unit. Firefighters on scene continued to overhaul for an extended period of time. Fire investigators from the town of Bethlehem Police Department arrived on scene and began to conduct their investigation into the fire. Multiple residents that lived in the apartment were not allowed to return to the structure as code enforcement secured all of the utilities to the building and deemed the building unsafe to enter. No injuries were reported, and the fire is currently under investigation.