Lightning strike burns in roof for 10 hours

Thirty-three members of the Hamlin Fire Department responded to a fire in a twelve-unit apartment building that was sparked by a lightning strike from a vicious storm ten hours earlier. The blaze grew unseen in the center of the attic space over #47 Victor Lane in the Bradford Manor Apartment Complex until it finally burned through the roof and neighbors called 911.

The Hamlin Fire Department was dispatched to the fire at 11:26 a.m. and the first pumper was on scene three minutes later reporting smoke from the roof of a large apartment building. The first member of the fire department on scene was Anthony Bovenzi, who assisted in the evacuation of the building. The fire was declared under control in 15 minutes, according to a department spokesperson.

The Walker Fire Department sent a pumper to the scene of the fire and the Morton Fire Department sent one pumper to fill in at the Hamlin firehouse.

The middle four apartments in the building were deemed uninhabitable and the Red Cross was on scene to assist the occupants.