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None hurt in APG fire

By L’Oreal Thompson

Posted 3/06/09

A multi-use storage building at Aberdeen Proving Ground caught fire Wednesday night around 9:30.

No one was injured as a result of the three-alarm fire, but there was substantial damage to the building, according to George Mercer, chief of public affairs at APG.

“I don’t have a figure yet,” Mercer said. “It was a multi-use building and the fire was contained in one area. That area sustained serious damage up to and including the roof. The firefighters were able to control it in such a way it didn’t damage other areas.”

According to Mercer, 19 emergency units with more than 75 firefighters from six different fire companies from both Harford and Baltimore counties responded to the fire on the Edgewood Area of the post.

Dave Williams, a spokesman for the Harford County Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services, said Joppa Magnolia, Abingdon, Aberdeen, Bel Air and Fallston fire companies in Harford County responded along with the Kingsville fire company from Baltimore County.

Williams said the APG Fire Department asked for two additional tankers and two additional engines “due to water needs and cold weather to rotate crews.”

Williams said he did not know the extent of the water issues.

The volunteer fire companies assisted the APG Fire Department as part of a mutual agreement.

“We utilize those agreements on a daily basis,” Williams said. “It’s not just a little neighborhood volunteer fire company any more. It’s a regional service. That’s how we’re set up to respond wherever the incident may be.”

The fire was under control at about 10:15 p.m., Mercer said.

“They worked pretty hard at it,” he said.

Mercer said the building would require extensive remodeling and construction, but exact details are not yet available.