Reading apartment house left uninhabitable after fire

Jun. 30—Crews worked quickly Wednesday to contain an apartment house fire in the 300 block of North Second Street in Reading, but the damage still left the building's two units uninhabitable, according to Jeremy Searfoss, city fire marshal.

The fire was likely accidental and began as a burning stovetop in an upper floor apartment, Searfoss said.

He said the flames were starting to spread to cabinets and the ceilings in the kitchen when crews intervened.

Firefighters were on the scene about 3:15 p.m. They stopped the fire's progress and extinguished the flames within 10 minutes.

One adult and three children — the occupants of the upper floor apartment — were in or around the property when the fire started.

They were able to escape the fire uninjured, Searfoss said, but a man who noticed the fire entered the building after bystanders told him someone might be trapped inside.

"He was a good Samaritan," Searfoss said.

The man suffered moderate smoke inhalation and was treated at the Reading Hospital.

Firefighters searched the building and found no sign of trapped occupants, Searfoss noted.

The building will not be able to be occupied following the fire, since it suffered a significant amount of smoke and water damage, and both units lost power.

"The water we used to extinguish the fire followed the path of least resistance and went down to the first floor onto some electrical wiring," Searfoss said.

The first floor apartment was vacant, but the single adult and three children who lived in the upper apartment will seek lodging with the Red Cross.