At about 23:20 on the night of August 12, Station 20 was alerted to assist Station 23 at the scene of a structure fire at the Plant Growers Workshop building on Evans City Rd. in Jackson Township. Engine 20 responded shortly with a crew of six and was the first fire apparatus on the scene. Upon arrival, heavy smoke was seen along with flames peeking out around the eaves and various other places.
A crew immediately set about pulling a 2.5-inch line to attack the fire via a man door on the north side of the structure. Due to concerns about the stability of the structure’s metal roof, crews only advanced a few feet into the building, attacking the visible fire in that area. Engine 20 crews, with assistance from others, also removed a large garage door for better access to the fire.
Tanker 20 responded shortly and went about working on the water supply. The entire 2,000 feet of 5-inch supply line was laid down on routes 68 and 528 to supply water from the Evans City reservoir.
Multiple tankers were also used to ferry water from a hydrant on Ridge Road. Tankers were supplied from stations 20, 23 (Harmony), 19 (Callery), 12 (Connoquenessing), 13 (Prospect), 24 (Portersville), 70 (Franklin Township [Beaver County]), 26 (Big Knob [Beaver County]) and 2200 (Wurtemburg-Perry [Lawrence County]). Tanker 42, Engine 19 and Engine 22-2 were used as pumpers on route 68.
Engine 20, Ladder 22 (Zelienople), Engine 23-2, Engine 23, Rescue 22 and Tower 42 (Adams Area) supplied crews at the scene.
Station 21 (Cranberry) responded with manpower and provided an engine at the reservoir.
Station 3 (Meridian) responded to Evans City Borough to stand by.
Station 20 crews assisted with various tasks throughout the long night before being released in the early morning to pack up the supply line and return to station.
The fire engulfed the 38,000-square-foot structure and with the weak roof, which later fell in, full extinguishment was nearly impossible. The fire was left to burn itself out, which took several days.
In addition to the three photos above, please see the gallery for eight additional photos of the fire.

At 16:14 on Saturday, May 30, Station 20 was alerted for a structure fire on Third St. in Evans City Borough. Engine 20, Engine 19, Tanker 19, Engine 23, Tanker 23, Ladder 22, Rescue 22 and EMS 62-3 quickly responded to the scene. Police arrived on scene first and confirmed a working garage fire attached to a residence. A large volume of smoke in the air prompted Captain 20 to call for a second alarm, which was stations 42, 12, 3, and 11. But soon all of those stations were advised to stand down with the exception of manpower and a ladder from 42.
Engine 20 arrived on scene of a story-and-a-half single-family dwelling with moderate smoke pushing from the alpha/bravo corner and a large amount of fire in a single car garage. With Safety Officer 20 (Natali) in command, Captain 20 (Quinn) and FF Senn pulled a 2½ preconnect and made an aggressive attack, knocking the fire down. FF Senn then joined FF Jamison and pulled a 1¾ line to perform an interior search for extension. Only a smoke condition was found throughout the structure. Engine 19 crew was assigned the task of overhauling the garage and dousing hot spots. Captain 20 then assumed command.
Ladder 22 crew went to work checking for extension in the eaves on the alpha/bravo corner where there was a moderate amount of smoke pushing out. No extension was found. They then went to the alpha/delta corner to assist Engine 19 and Engine 23 crews vent the garage. They also pulled siding above the fire room. Minor extension was found on the first truss of the division 2 delta side. Ladder 42 crews went inside to perform salvage and move items away from the interior delta wall. There was smoke damage throughout the structure and water damage in the subdivision.
The fire is considered accidental in nature, likely caused by a hot engine on a lawn tractor pulled into the garage. The time from first alarm to first water on the fire was about 8 minutes.