UPDATE Teen killed in Union County fire

Justin Strawser, The Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa.
·2 min read

Apr. 12—BUFFALO TOWNSHIP — A 16-year-old juvenile died in an overnight fire that destroyed a home along Buffalo Road in Union County.

Trooper James Nizinski, the fire marshal with the Milton State Police Barracks, reported the boy could not escape the second-floor blaze reported at 2:08 a.m. at a home located on the 6000 block of Buffalo Road in Buffalo Township. Union County Coroner Dominick Adamo responded to the scene, Nizinski said.

Mifflinburg Hose Company Fire Chief Steve Walter said the fire was "fully involved" when firefighters arrived.

"The first arriving chief was a quarter mile ahead of me, reporting heavy fire on three sides of the building," Water said this morning. "It was well-involved on the first and second floors. It was a fully involved structure when we got there."

As firefighters responded, initial emergency calls reported a possible entrapment of three people, which was confirmed when they got on the scene. One person jumped from a second-floor window, but Walter said he was not sure how the second person escaped.

The juvenile did not make it out, he said.

"We did what we could do to get to that person," said Walter. "The heat of the fire thwarted the effort. We had to do some fire suppression before we could even get inside to do a search."

The two individuals who escaped were taken to Evangelical Community Hospital in Lewisburg to be treated for smoke inhalation, one of which was exacerbated by asthma, Walter said. Life Flight from Geisinger was requested, but it had to be canceled due to weather conditions, said Walter.

The conditions of the two residents who escaped the fire are unknown this morning.

The fire was knocked out and under control in about an hour. The firefighters spent three hours on scene, leaving at approximately 5:30 a.m., Walter said. Parts of Route 192 were closed for several hours to allow for emergency response.

Nizinski was on scene this morning to investigate, said Walter.

This is a developing story. More details will be published when they become available.