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A Sunday morning fire tore through six row homes in Harrisburg's Allison Hill neighborhood, collapsing two buildings, displacing 13 residents, and sending firefighters into a grueling multi-hour battle — yet remarkably, no one was hurt.
According to PennLive, crews were dispatched at 6:37 a.m. Sunday (February 22) to the 400 block of Hummel Street, where fire had broken out on the second floor of a middle row home. From there, the blaze spread rapidly through the row, ultimately involving six homes.
Harrisburg Fire Chief Brian Enterline said the fire originated at 417 Hummel Street and spread primarily along the second floor and the third-floor cockloft — the non-habitable void space between the top-floor ceiling and the roof. Two homes collapsed, while the remaining structures sustained significant smoke and water damage.
"It was an extremely difficult firefight for us," Enterline told PennLive, describing the operation as "manpower-intensive" and "labor-intensive." Tight alleyways blocked access to the rear of the buildings, and holes in the floor of the original structure forced crews to abandon it and fight the fire from either side.
A second alarm brought in mutual aid from multiple municipalities across Dauphin and Cumberland counties. Emergency medical services also responded on scene to support firefighters throughout the operation. According to CBS 21, the fire was marked under control at 8:14 a.m., and WGAL reports that crews fully cleared the scene by around 10:15 a.m.
The 13 people displaced by the fire are being cared for by the American Red Cross. A neighbor at the scene told PennLive that at least four of the homes are completely uninhabitable, and several families with small children lived in the row. An infant car seat left on a porch underscored the sudden upheaval for those affected.
One neighbor suggested someone in the home where the fire started had been "playing with fire" and fled when the blaze broke out. Enterline confirmed that investigators have "some good information on how the fire started," and said the Harrisburg Police Department will be handling the investigation. The official cause of the fire has not yet been determined.