A large fire caused by an unattended charcoal grill burned the home of three people at 3035 Churchview Ave. in north on Saturday night. Only two people were in the house at the time, and they escaped without harm.
Three firefighters were injured, however, including one fireman—Bob Wysocki—who fell through a floor inside of the burning building's first-floor kitchen while battling the blaze. Before Wysocki could fall all the way through the floor to the home's basement, fellow fireman Alex Vogel caught him and pulled him to safety.
Wysocki and Vogel are from , which was the first fire company to reach the blaze. Baldwin Independent was the closest station to the fire, as its headquarters are at 3049 Churchview.
Baldwin Independent's Captain Bill Connors said that the firefighters injured on the scene were all lucky enough to sustain only minor injuries.
The two other injured fighters—from the Brentwood Volunteer Fire Company and Mt. Oliver Fire Department—suffered from smoke inhalation, according to Connors.
"Everyone is OK, though," Connors said. "Just banged up."
At least a half-dozen fire companies helped to fight the fire, including crews from as far away as West Homestead and Pleasant Hills boroughs.
As of 11 p.m., Churchview was closed from Glass Run Road to Willett Road.
Aaron Pasquini, who lives in the two-and-a-half story house, said that no one was tending to the grill when it lit the house's wooden deck on fire. The fire then quickly spread to the rest of the home.
"We're all fine," Pasquini said. "I believe it was a grill in the back, and we just weren't paying attention to it."
Crews were still on the scene fighting the fire as of 11 p.m.
Witnesses said that the fire started at around 9 p.m.
---
Follow the Baldwin-Whitehall Patch on Facebook and Twitter.
Sign up for the .
