Belmont: Firefighters make "great save" to building-alert neighbor assists

BELMONT-A former garage, converted to a residential office, was saved by an alert neighbor and quick action by volunteer firefighters. Fire departments from Belmont, Scio and Friendship along with Amity Rescue were called to a structure fire Tuesday night around 10 p.m. at 4986 Hood Road. Jeff Luckey is the Allegany County Emergency Manager and Fire Coordinator. He tells us firefighters made "a great stop and save." He said a neighbor driving by the property spotted smoke and fire, called 911, then took action. A quick response by firefighters limited damage to the 16 by 24 foot structure. Luckey said "everybody did an excellent job." He said there was minimal structural damage...there was some smoke and heat damage and some electronics took a hit. There were no reported injuries to the 24 or so firefighters who responded. Luckey said investigators determined the cause was electrical in nature. While damage was minimal, Luckey said the repair cost could exceed $10,000.