Five homes damaged in McColloch Street fire | News, Sports, Jobs

WHEELING – Four homes were destroyed and a fifth suffered excessive smoke damage during a multi-structure fire that started late Saturday morning and continued into the afternoon.

Philip Stahl, public information officer for the Wheeling Fire Department, said the first call about the fire came in around 11 a.m. Saturday and reported heavy smoke coming from a home at 1068 McColloch St.

A house at 1066 McColloch St., as well as those at 1070, 1072 and 1074 were also in danger, so the emergency was elevated to a second fire alarm, calling for additional off-duty firefighters, he said.

The first four structures suffered significant damage, while the house at 1074 McColloch was reported to have smoke damage, according to Stahl.

Fire Chief Jim Blazier said no one was injured in the fire.

“The structures were occupied, but no one was home,” Blazier said.

At least two firefighters were exhausted during the fire and received intravenous drips, he added.

Blazier said the cause of the fire is not yet known and will be investigated by the fire department's Bureau of Fire Investigations.

On Saturday, live power lines in front of the structures complicated firefighting efforts.

“They couldn’t move from one path to another,” Blazier said.

American Electric Power workers were called to the scene and accessibility issues forced them to cut off power to the entire neighborhood so firefighters could respond safely.

Blazier noted that the affected homes had more damage to the rear.

Firefighters were still on scene at 1:30 p.m. and he expected them to remain there “for at least the next two hours” until the fire was extinguished.