UPDATE: All-hands fire in Saranac Lake brought assist from 13 fire companies

SARANAC LAKE| An all-hands fire at the CED (Consolidated Electrical Distributors)-Twin Electric Supply building brought firefighters from 13 fire companies to a plaza on Upper Broadway at about 3:25 a.m. on Jan. 25. The blaze sent flames some 60 feet into the night sky and emergency services called "all hands" in Franklin County, adding mutual aid calls to companies in Essex and Clinton counties. According to Saranac Lake Volunteer Fire Department Chief Brendan Keough there were at least 50 firefighters helping put the fire out. The Aubuchon Hardware store adjacent to the CED building was saved. "Fire did extend into one side of Aubuchon on the roof. They did get some smoke and water damage," the chief said. But the two Aubuchon cats were safely evacuated as soon as personnel was on site. With fire personnel in five aerial trucks pushing down the fire, others worked to save Aubuchon. "We used the Blitz master stream nozzle with a larger diameter hose. It sits on a stand and is set to oscillate. It held the fire back from extending further into Aubuchon. When you have that much heat and that much fire, it's about how much water you can get on it," Keough said. The Saranac Lake firefighters also boosted the sprinkler system inside the Aubuchon Hardware building using a hydrant feed from their trucks. "We had four aerial devices and added South Plattsburgh to help keep the blaze away from Aubuchon," Keough said. There is a quiet residential area behind the CED plaza, but none of the homes there were really at risk, he said. The three buildings heavily damaged included CED, a construction company in the center and Ampersand Electric. "The whole structure is a lot bigger than it looks from the road. Behind the CED building, there's a storage facility about the same size as the front building. They're connected by the roof," Keough said. The fire was discovered by a Saranac Lake Department of Public Works crew who had gone in for the early morning shift, the chief said. Their call was placed at 3:23 a.m. Saranac Lake fire department personnel were already out on a call, tracking down a gas smell, Keough said. "We were pretty good on water," he said of the draw on the village water system. No firefighters were injured, but the Saranac Lake Volunteer Rescue was on standby at their station close to the scene. "The CED and construction company building are a complete loss," Keough said. "Ampersand Electric sustained heavy damage. Aubuchon sustained water and smoke damage and some damage to the roof. The metal roof that collapsed came down over CED and the construction company. About two-thirds of it fell." Saranac Lake used their leased aerial truck, but they do have a new one on order due for delivery in the fall. "All the help was great from all of the fire departments, the community was great. Everybody did a super job," Keough said. Nearby the fire scene, Saranac Lake neighbor Bonnie Krasher was alerted very early in the morning by her goldendoodle puppy, Simon. "He started acting strange, barking and barking. He kept pawing at me," Krasher said. "It was 3:11 a.m. So I took him out. Then the scanner went off and Saranac Lake Police officers reported smoke conditions at the CED building. I think there is a solar company at the location. It's right next to Aubuchon Hardware." From her upper bedroom window, Krasher saw smoke begin to billow and then erupt into huge flames within minutes. "The next thing I saw was Officer (Travis) Labar and Officer (Aaron) Sharlow clearing out the hydrants," she said. Krasher and her husband live on Ampersand Avenue, across the street and a short distance southwest of the CED property at 258 Broadway. The Aubuchon Hardware is adjacent to CED. Both are one-story structures. "Then I heard them call in fire departments from Tupper Lake, Paul Smiths-Gabriels, Bloomingdale, Tupper Lake, Malone and (South) Plattsburgh," Krasher said, watching as five fire trucks kept pouring water on the smoldering ruin even at 8:30 a.m., five hours since the call came in. "Only the corner of the building at Aubuchon's burned," Krasher said of the active fire fight beyond her window. It was a scary and fast-spreading blaze, she said. "I can't believe they stopped it. "They had the flames knocked down by about 4:45 a.m. The Saranac Lake aerial (truck) was up in the air, and Malone's aerial was up, and Tupper Lake's aerial. Malone's went on the back side of the building; it is double or even triple the length of the others. Plattsburgh fire got there later as the flames were knocked back." Krasher watched the central section of the building's roof collapse. The smoke was horrifying, she said, billowing in huge clouds. roiling up and off the fire, first white, then black. "You could see the fire moving across the roofline of the building. For a while, it was very intense." Her husband, Jim, could feel the heat while standing outside their home, Krasher said. Krasher said their friend could see the fire's glow in Saranac Lake from the boat launch in Tupper Lake. Krasher was impressed by the vast response and the actions of Saranac Lake Police Department officers. "They were clearing out the hydrants before the fire trucks got to the scene." And it was frigid outside. Air temperatures were 15 degrees in Saranac Lake by daylight Wednesday morning. The driveway and roadway at Krasher's home is covered in ice. "I don't know how, but one of the snowplows knocked the fire hose off the hydrant by our house on Ampersand," Krasher said. "But they got it connected again." The stretch of upper Broadway that becomes Route 86 heading toward Adirondack Health was closed for about seven hours on Wednesday morning. Fire companies report mutual aid and standby included Keene and Wilmington volunteer fire departments, along with support from as far north as Chateaugay and Hogansburg. Fire personnel had returned to the Saranac Lake Fire Station by 12:35 p.m. There is no formal word yet as to cause or area of origin. But it is under investigation by the Franklin County Cause and Origin Team and State Fire investigators.

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UPDATE: All-hands fire in Saranac Lake brought assist from 13 fire companies

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