Flames Tear Through Former Longfellow Inn In Vandergrift, Displacing Residents Next Door

VANDERGRIFT (KDKA) -- Fast-moving flames engulfed multiple buildings in Vandergrift early Tuesday morning.

The roof of the former Longfellow Inn was completely burned through, and the building has been vacant for quite a while.

The flames were intense in the back of the inn, and that's where the fire chief said it started around 11:30 p.m. on Monday night.

The chief says those flames spread to the building next door and now four residents are displaced. Thankfully, they got out safely.

"When I was walking into my yard, I saw the smoke coming out of the roof, and I called 911," said Renae Graham.

Graham saw the flames when she returned home from work and rushed inside to help her husband and two kids escape.

"The kids were asleep, so they were kind of groggy getting up. They were fighting up to get up, but I think I had the right timing getting off of work. I literally just pulled in from work. It's just scary to come home to that," Graham said.

The family hopes to return to their home soon, with minor damage to repair.

"Maybe building up new siding, getting the water damaged fixed," said Graham. "We just got married on Saturday. We were supposed to go on our honeymoon this week. We'll see if that will happen."

The chief says they ran into some problems at first putting out the flames because of water issues, and one firefighter ended up hurting his knee.

The fire marshall is also here investigating.