VIDEO: Massive fire destroys home in Chester

A dog was killed and a Chester firefighter was sent to the hospital during a massive fire that destroyed the home at 67 Rock Ridge Road in the Town of Chester Tuesday night, Chester Fire Department Chief Tom Marchiano said Wednesday.

Video shot from Valley View Drive in Chester from the base of Sugar Loaf Mountain. Video credit: Kevin Kern

“The call came in around 8:30 p.m. and the house was fully involved when we arrived,” Marchiano said. “We had access issues due to a tight driveway and roadway and no hydrants in the area, so we relied on pump water and fill sites. There was a loss of a dog, a male homeowner was treated on scene for smoke inhalation and one firefighter who was transported to the hospital with a minor injury was released within an hour.”

Though the blaze was extinguished Tuesday night, firefighters were called back to the scene Wednesday morning.

“We are back at the scene now,” Marchiano said by phone Wednesday afternoon. “The county fire coordinator stopped here this morning on his way to work and saw smoke. Even when a fire is put out, heat sometimes stays in the wood and over time it tries to spark back up. There were no additional flames today but there was a bit of smoke. We dumped a bunch of water on it and used an excavator to get to some sports that were hard to reach.”

As for what caused the blaze, Chester Supervisor Brandon Holdridge told Straus News he heard a candle may have been involved but could not confirm. Marchiano said while he also heard the mention of a candle, there has yet to be a determination as to what started the fire.

“The Orange County fire investigators and Orange County DA’s arson taskforce are doing a joint investigation,” he said. “I did hear about a candle, but usually the investigators don’t give any insight until they find a definitive cause or they find it undetermined. It may be difficult to pinpoint a cause due to the condition of the structure when we arrived.”

Marchiano said the arson taskforce’s involvement does not necessarily mean arson is suspected.

Chester was assisted by departments from Woodbury, Monroe, Goshen, New Hampton, Washingtonville, Pine Island, Florida, South Blooming Grove and Kiryas Joel.