One woman injured in two-alarm blaze at Seemsville Pub in Allen Township

March 28-- Mar. 28--One woman suffered second-degree burns in a fire Wednesday at the Seemsville Pub and Grille in Allen Township.

The woman's injuries were minor and she was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest for treatment, said state Trooper Nathan T. Branosky.

The fire began just before 10 a.m. at the pub at 3819 Seemsville Road.

Tenants were occupying two of the upstairs apartments, witnesses said. The fire is believed to have started in one of those apartments.

An unidentified female tenant managed to escape through a window onto the lower roof and then jump onto a car roof, witnesses said. It's unclear if she's the one taken to the hospital.

Crews arrived and dispatched a report of heavy smoke and flames coming from the second floor.

"We had 10 fire companies respond to this," Allen Township Fire Chief Dale Hassler said. "I'd say the biggest challenge of fighting this fire was chasing hot spots through crawl spaces.

"This is an old building that's seen a lot of renovations with layers of ceilings being put in over the years," Hassler said. "There were many spaces for the flames to travel through."

The state police fire marshal has been requested to assist in the investigation into the blaze, Branosky said. The fire's cause appears to be accidental, Hassler said.

The owners of the pub also own the 1760 Pub-n-Grille in Trexlertown. They posted on the pub's Facebook page that one of their servers, Kelly Ettl, lives above the Seemsville Pub and lost her home and belongings in the fire.

"As many of you already know our sister location Seemsville Pub n Grill experienced a horrifying fire this morning," the Facebook post reads. "Our server Kelli lives in the apartment above the restaurant and has lost everything. Please keep all of the family and staff and especially Kelli in your prayers as we take the next steps to moving on."

An online fundraiser seeks to raise $5,000 to assist Ettl.

The Seemsville has been a bar and restaurant with upstairs apartments for years. Hassler believes the oldest part of the building dates back to the 1800s, as indicated by the stone walls typical of construction from that era.

Taking over ownership last year, the Hanna family renovated and reopened the business, which served steak and seafood meals and wing and taco specials along with drinks.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Hanna family was gathered in the parking lot, alternating between talking to firefighters and an insurance representative and talking on their phones. They and two of their tenants declined to be identified or comment to the newspaper while surveying the damage.

The Hanna family later released a statement about the fire: "On behalf of the owners and staff of Seemsville we would like to thank our community for the outpouring of support. We are thankful that this tragic event ended without any life threatening injuries to any of the residents or staff. We extend our gratitude to the first responders and countless firefighters. We hope to come back to our Seemsville home as soon as possible."

Family friends and longtime customers stopped by to offer support as passing motorists slowed down to look at the damage or pulled over to take pictures.

It remains to be seen if the building will have to be razed and completely rebuilt.

Morning Call reporter Andrew Scott contributed to this report.

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