The Lady’s Island-St. Helena Fire District was called to the report of a residential fire in the Warsaw Island Road neighborhood of St. Helena Island on Sunday, March 23 just after 11:30 p.m.
First arriving fire personnel found a large elevated home with heavy fire extending through the roof. Initial signs, and a report from a neighbor, were that no one was in the home at the time and firefighters were able to quickly confirm that via phone with the owner who was not in town at the time.
Firefighters fought steady winds that fed the flames as they worked tirelessly to first contain the fire and then to extinguish it. The fire was brought under control in about 30 minutes and firefighters remained on scene for a few more hours as they salvaged what they could of the family’s belongings and investigated its cause.
Warsaw Island Road was shut down for the duration of the operation as the fire hydrant that supplied the firefighters with water was some distance down from the home at which they were operating.
Thankfully, there were no injuries immediately reported from anyone involved as some 25 firefighters, medical personnel from Beaufort County EMS, and law enforcement officials from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, worked together to minimize the fire’s impact to all involved.
The cause of the fire is pending and the Palmetto Chapter of the American Red Cross is assisting the family who was unable to return to the home as it had extensive fire damage.
