Early Morning Blaze Destroys Forward Twp. Home

FORWARD TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- An early-morning fire destroyed a home in the 600 block of Munger Lane in Forward Township.

Dennis Baccile lives next door to the home and was woken up by his neighbor, whose home was on fire.

"He was apologizing for his house catching our house on fire. At that point it was so chaotic we just wanted to get out of the house," Baccile said outside his house.

He, his wife and 5-day-old son got out of their home.

According to fire crews, their neighbor's home caught fire at 5:15 Sunday morning. By the time they got there about four minutes later, it was engulfed in flames.

"When we got on the on scene, it was well involved," Gallatin-Sunnyside VFD Captain Brandan Newman said.

We're at an fire in Forward Township. Working to learn more. pic.twitter.com/GpmEk7NSXM

— Chris Hoffman (@NewsmanChris) October 6, 2019

Some of the flames reached up to the height of nearby trees, which was about 40 feet high.

"One of our guys said he could see it from his house across from the river," Capt. Newman said.

A few of the nearby trees caught fire from the blaze.

"You could hear them all sizzling," neighbor Dennis Kroll said. "That's when I actually went out and started spraying down my house."

Fire crews said the homeowner was able to get out and did not go to the hospital. One cat died in the fire. They are calling the home a total loss.

"It's been a fire hazard," Baccile said.

Now Baccile and his family are out of their home, which sits about 10 feet from their neighbor. The fire spread to their back porch. They also got smoke and water damage.

Baccile said his neighbor's home had holes in the roof and the walls were falling apart.

"It's been grown over," he said.

His family is staying with family and friends. The Red Cross is offering help to Baccile and his neighbor.

The Allegheny County Fire Marshall is investigating the cause of the fire.

Firefighters say one man was in the home and he made it out ok.

— Chris Hoffman (@NewsmanChris) October 6, 2019

One man was home at the time, but he made it out safely.

The house has substantial damage, with nearly half of it destroyed by the fire.

Stay with KDKA for the latest on this developing story