By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
St. Joseph fire crews battled a house fire near 17th and Colhoun on Tuesday afternoon.
An abandoned brick house was reported on fire just after 1 p.m. and was fully engulfed by the time crews arrived.
Two occupied, adjacent houses, one to the north and one to the south, also caught fire, but inspector Mindy Andrasevits says damage to the occupied homes was minimal.
"While they worked to put the fire out, they really wanted to protect the two occupied structures," Andrasevits told the Post on scene. "And they did that. Both structures were saved with little damage."
Andrasevits says people in the neighboring houses got out safely and without injury.
The abandoned house has been deemed a total loss. The blaze was almost fully out by 2:40 p.m. The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
Andrasevits says battling a blaze in such bitterly cold conditions creates challenges.
"Everything just turns to ice immediately," she says. "It's dangerous. So, they have to be really careful with that."
