Station 43 on the Kitchen Fire

Station 43 dispatched with Station 35 Polk Township for a reported working fire in Pleasant valley Estates. 43-1-2 arrived on scene and provided the interior crew for 35-1-1's lines. With Chief Snyder on the line a quick knockdown was made. The fire had a jumpstart and the house does appear to be a total loss.

Kitchen fire guts house in Pleasant Valley Estates
Catherine Rodriguez
Pocono Record Writer
December 13, 2006


JONAS — A fast-moving fire in the West End destroyed a home and killed a family pet.

Gregory Williams was cooking dinner in the kitchen of his rental home at 35 Pohopoco Drive in the Pleasant Valley Estates development when he left the room to go to the bathroom. When he returned, the kitchen was in flames.

"I tried to put it out with a blanket but I couldn't," said Williams. "I couldn't find my phone so I just went outside and yelled, 'Fire!'

Neighbor Jessica Drinkwater heard Williams.

"I heard him yelling 'Fire!' and went over to see if I could help," said Drinkwater, who lives across the street. "We tried to put it out with a hose, but it was too short. So I went back home and called 911."

She later came back with a jacket for Williams to wear.

Firefighters tried to salvage what they could: some clothing and a jewelry box, along with some photos. They found Williams' cat in the house after the flames were extinguished.

"The fire department came so fast," said Williams. "They were great, and I thank them."

He was unable to reach his wife Sarah, who had called minutes before the fire broke out to tell her husband that she would be working overtime at her job in Allentown.

"I don't know how to tell her about this," he said. "We've lived here eight years."

The fire is accidental, according to Polk Township Assistant Chief Terry Jacoby.

"It was a grease fire that got away from Mr. Williams," he said. "It traveled up the wall into the bedroom and there was no stopping it. Grease fires travel very fast."

The Red Cross was called to assist with lodging and clothing.

Firefighters from the West End, Sun Valley, and Penn Forest Township in Carbon County assisted at the scene, as well as West End EMS.