TOWN OF POUGHKEEPSIE – The Fairview Fire Department was summoned to a series of abandoned warehouses on Saturday after Dutchess 911 received numerous reports of a fire at the location. Fairview Firefighters responded to the address around 1:00 p.m. and observed a blaze with a billowing plume of black smoke that was visible in Ulster County. A second alarm was struck bringing numerous other career and volunteer fire departments to assist Fairview at the scene.
Fairview firefighters were joined at the scene by professional firefighters from Poughkeepsie, Arlington, and LaGrange, along with dedicated volunteers from Hyde Park, Roosevelt, and Pleasant Valley fire departments.
Firefighters were recently at the same address for a fire in the building that was extinguished quickly. Saturday’s blaze proved much more difficult because of the size of the fire and the limited access for fire apparatus to get close to the building.
The efforts of the firefighters on the hot and humid day were further tested as a result of a partially broken fire hydrant on the south side of Fairview Avenue.
County officials including Dutchess County Executive William O’Neil joined fire command staff at the scene to expedite any assistance needed to extinguish the blaze. The fire was under control approximately an hour after the firefighters first arrived on the scene and it was extinguished a short time after that.
Sources at the scene told Mid-Hudson News that the fire is being considered arson and an investigation had begun. Members of the Dutchess County Fire Investigation Division were at the smoldering warehouse to search for clues. They were assisted by members of the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) unit that deployed a drone to provide the command staff with an aerial view of the scene.
VIDEO compilation of various portions of the fire:
Photo gallery of the first responders at the scene:
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