Croton's Bravest were dispatched to a report of smoke in the basement of an Old Post Road South building in the Upper Village at 1:30 PM this Saturday. A Full Department Response from the CFD as well as a Ladder Company from Ossining were dispatched.

Upon the arrival of Tanker 10, Car 2089 (D.C. John Munson) established Command, and sent the crews from T10 & U14 in to investigate the basement of the two-story tax payer which contains "Groovy on Grand," "Franki's Deli," "Senses Salon" and "Yoga Sol." The crew, under the charge of Captain Pesavento and Lieutenant Ferguson, confirmed a smoke condition. A hose line from Tanker 10 was stretched to the basement while personnel from E118 began evacuating the stores and apartments above.

As the crews in the basement began opening up the ceiling, they located fire underneath the entrance to Groovy on Grand adjacent to the stairwell leading to the upstairs apartments. A second hose line from T10 was stretched to the first floor and Command transmitted a "10-75" for the confirmed fire. Personnel from Ossining's Ladder 41 assisted Croton personnel opening up the first floor and checking for extension. Engine 120 grabbed a hydrant and laid a 5" hose supply line to T10.

The fire was extinguished in fast order, and Command cancelled the incoming Mutual Aid units on the 10-75 assignment, which included the Ossining FASTeam, Buchanan Cascade Truck, Croton EMS and relocate units to Harmon Firehouse from Montrose and Mohegan.

Crews opened up the basement ceiling, first floor flooring and wall area as well as a section of sidewalk to access the seat of the fire. Once the fire was fully extinguished, the building was vented of smoke and all occupancies were checked for Carbon Monoxide prior to letting tenants back in.

At 2:02 PM, Command placed the incident "under control," and began releasing units from the scene. Tanker 10 and Utility 14 remained on scene a little while longer awaiting Croton PD and the Building Department, with all units clear of the scene at 2:35 PM.

Over 40 volunteers from the Croton-on-Hudson Fire Department, as well as another 10 from Ossining, were on scene. Luckily this fire was noticed early on, preventing what could have been devastating fire damage to the older building.

All photos by John Nohai.