Three displaced in Scranton fire

Nov. 30--A Friday night fire displaced at least three Scranton residents from their 611 Mineral Ave. home and caused major damag to the building.

The 8:20 p.m. fire significantly damaged the first floor of the home's interior and left the second floor with some smoke and fire damage, said Scranton Fire Department Capt. Dave Schreiber.

Capt. Screiber said "there was heavy fire on the first floor upon our arrival," and firefighters managed to get it under control in about 25 minutes.

The cause was under investigation.

After the flames were deemed under control, firefighters were systematically going through the building, periodically discarding charred rubble out the window. Meanwhile, water that spilled on the sidewalk during the firefighting effort quickly froze, thanks to Friday night's frigid temperatures.

Hashawn Baston, who lives in the front part of the house with her husband, Anthony Epps, said her family had insurance, but that would only go so far.

"You can have all the insurance in the world, but it can't replace all the things that went with (the house) -- the work you put into it, years spent on it, you know," Ms. Baston said. "That stuff doesn't get paid back by insurance."

Ms. Baston said she was home when the fire started in her mother's half of the house but did not know how it started or what the extent of the damage was. She said she got out as quickly as possible when she realized the building was on fire.

She said her mother was not home during the incident.

Emergency responders summoned the Red Cross to the scene to ensure the couple had a place to go.

Contact the writer: [email protected], @kwindTT on Twitter

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