3 people displaced by fire at Taylor Avenue home in Arnold

A basement fire Saturday in a home on Taylor Avenue in Arnold displaced three residents but caused no injuries, Arnold fire Chief Eric Gartley said.

Firefighters responded about 12:30 p.m. to a single-family house at 1419 Taylor Ave. when smoke was seen.

Alerted to the fire by a neighbor, a 19-year-old woman escaped with a dog as the house filled with smoke. Both were not hurt.

A firefighter from Frazer later found a cat that was hiding under a piano, Gartley said.

“We deployed our crews, and it took a little while to get to the root of the fire, but we were able to get to it,” Gartley said at the scene. “It’s, you know, taking some time to make sure we get all the hot spots.”

What caused the fire at the 1½- story brick home was not known. A state fire marshal will be called in to investigate.

Gartley said what appeared to be burning in the basement were “a lot of ordinary materials, combustibles, clothing, some of those types of items.”

Gartley praised first responders including firefighters from surrounding communities that responded under mutual aid.

“We had a great response from the fire companies,” he said. Among the volunteers who responded were firefighters from Arnold, New Kensington, Lower Burrell, Citizens Hose in Harrison, Frazer, Logans Ferry and Sardis from Plum.

The home’s occupants were staying with a relative.