By Katie Northcott, News Director
Manchester Fire Department (MFD) Chief George Chambers confirmed that his department responded to a call about a house fire on Powell Road around 12:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 9.
Chambers said that the fire started on the back portion of the house. He estimated that about a quarter of the house sustained damage and would need to be repaired He said that the rest of the house was saved. Red Cross is currently on scene to help the affected family.
According to Chambers, there was not a fire hydrant near the scene of the fire, so the firefighters relied on tanker shuttles to supply water. MFD’s firetrucks hold about 1,000 gallons of water, but the county has tanker shuttles that store water for instances when there is no fire hydrant near the scene of a fire. The tankers store between 2,500 and 4,000 gallons of water each.
Chambers said that since the firefighters used tanker shuttles, the response to the fire did not put strain on the Duck River Utility Commission (DRUC), which had shut down to perform repairs on a main water transmission line and at the time, was relying on water storage to supply its customers.
Find reporting on DRUC’s repair here.
Summitville Volunteer Fire Department, New Union Volunteer Fire Department, North Coffee Volunteer Fire Department, and Hillsboro Volunteer Fire Department were also involved in the operation. Hickerson Station Volunteer Fire Department also responded to the fire; however, it was determined that their assistance was not needed.
Chambers also commended EMS, the 911 Center, Coffee County EMA, and the Coffee County Rescue Squad for their efforts.
“All in all, it was a good operation,” Chambers said.
