By Christopher Leach
Lexington Herald-Leader
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A significant fire in the Masterson Station neighborhood damaged five homes under construction early Thursday morning, according to the Lexington Fire Department.
The incident occurred around 5:30 a.m. in the 1200 block of Marlena Lane. Battalion Chief Matt Galati said three houses under construction were fully involved in flames when firefighters first arrived on scene.
When firefighters arrived, the house farthest to the right had already collapsed, according to Galati. The middle house was fully involved in flames and beginning to collapse, and the house farthest left had fire coming out of the roof.
Firefighters entered the farthest-left house and tried to fight the fire from the inside but later had to evacuate due to the instability of the structure, Galati said. Firefighters fought the fire from outside the home and extinguished it.
No injuries were reported and no one was displaced from the fire. Galati said those three houses were under construction and were a total loss.
Two other homes under construction near the scene suffered heat damage. They were not considered a total loss, Galati said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation, and fire investigators were at the scene Thursday to determine what happened. Galati said he believed the farthest-left house of the three was structurally sound but crews were still taking precautions during the investigation.
“The second floor inside is real spongy so we’re going to be real careful about who we put inside,” Galati said. “Pretty much more than one person on the second floor doesn’t feel real good.”
Galati said just after 7 a.m. Thursday morning the fire department expected to be on scene for several more hours.
‘They were able to get over here real quick.’
Firefighters got to the scene very quickly because they were actually investigating a fire at a nearby apartment building when the call came in.
Shortly before 4:30 a.m., the fire department received a call about a fire at an apartment building under construction on Mulundy Lane, according to Galati. There was a fire in the kitchen of one unit and the sprinkler system knocked the fire down quickly.
The apartment suffered minor fire and water damage, according to Galati. No injuries were reported.
Galati said firefighters were already geared up and ready for action when the fire on Marlena Lane happened, which helped with the quick response.
“They were able to get over here real quick,” Galati said. “Once you’re already on the road, it makes a big difference if you’ve already got your gear on and you’re on the road.”
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