SHENANDOAH - A 52-year-old borough man died after fire tore through his home and an attached, unoccupied home Saturday night.
Samuel J. Nitolo Jr., 222 W. Columbus St., was rescued during a heroic effort by firefighters, but died a short time later.
Schuylkill County Deputy Coroner Andrew Szczyglak said he pronounced Nitolo dead at 10:44 p.m., about an hour and 15 minutes after the first call about the fire.
Flames gutted the upper floors of the Nitolo home as well as an attached home at 220 W. Columbus St. A garage adjacent to the 220 W. Columbus St. home also sustained heavy fire damage, officials said.
Shenandoah fire marshal Rick Examitas said investigators are looking into the possibility that the fire started somewhere inside the home at 220 W. Columbus St. and spread from there to the Nitolo home and a garage used for storage at 218. W. Coal St.
Fire Chief Russell Schumack said that in addition to the three buildings affected by flames, homes at 217 and 219 W. Poplar St. and 226 W. Columbus St. sustained heat damage to their exteriors.
Firefighters arriving at the scene were met with heavy fire coming from the second floor front windows of both homes as well as heavy fire from the back of both properties.
Schumack said the Schuylkill County Communications Center received multiple calls from residents reporting the fire and told firefighters that someone may be trapped inside.
As firefighters battled the flames, other firefighters frantically searched through the Nitolo home until one volunteer, Steve Barrett of the Rescue Hook and Ladder Company, found him on the second floor.
Nitolo was placed in a stokes, or rescue basket and then lowered from the front porch roof using ladders and ropes. Nitolo was turned over to paramedics and emergency medical technicians who began emergency treatment.
A MedEvac helicopter landed at the Shenandoah helipad, but their services were not needed.
On Sunday, state police fire marshals, Trooper John Burns and Trooper Edward Lizewski of the Frackville station, assisted Shenandoah police and fire officials to determine a cause of the blaze.
Both Burns and Examitas said a cause has not been determined.
Schumack said one firefighter suffered heat exhaustion and was treated at the scene.
It took crews from Shenandoah and surrounding communities more than an hour to bring the fire under control. Firefighters remained on the scene into the early morning hours Sunday making sure the fire was completely extinguished and securing the scene until investigators arrived.