Christmas Eve House Fire

Rudolf Von Domm ele

A Christmas Eve blaze in Nelsonville drew five fire and two ambulance companies from Putnam and other companies from surrounding areas. In less than an hour, the home was ravaged. The family escaped unharmed. Rudolf Von Domm ele The peace and quiet of Christmas Eve was just starting to settle over Philipstown last Thursday around 7pm. Many families were sitting down for dinner. Dozens of people were exiting church services.

Then, suddenly, there was a calamity. A spectacular clatter ruptured the serenity. Dozens of fire trucks and firefighters from nine fire companies across Putnam descended on a large home recently built at 240 Main Street in Nelsonville.

The Harrison residence, which is adjacent to the historic Philipstown Town Hall, had burst into flames and the inferno that resulted was one of the county's most devastating fires of the year.

"One of our children looked up and saw flames on the Christmas tree," Astrid Harrison told the PCN&R. "We are not sure how it started, but something went very wrong in that corner of the room."

A portable pool was set up on the street in front of Philipstown Town Hall to hold water trucked up from the Hudson. Elizabeth Ailes "I am from Austria, and our Christmas tradition is to have a big dinner on Christmas Eve and open presents. We were all in the same room when one of the kids saw the flames. We tried to put it out but it went up so quickly. It was complete confusion. It was a miracle no one got hurt," she said.

Within minutes the sprawling two-story wood frame dwelling was engulfed, with calls reporting an "inferno" being received by the Putnam 911 Dispatch Center in Carmel from as far as 15 miles away. Residents in the surrounding hills reported seeing a bonfire-like blaze from miles away.

Putnam County Emergency Services Coordinator Ralph Falloon assisted Cold Spring Fire Department Chief Tom Merrigan by deploying equipment and manpower to the scene while assuring that neighboring communities were protected by mutual aid companies in the event a fire or other emergency was reported in another jurisdiction.

Neighbors stand transfixed. Elizabeth Ailes Because the home is at the top of a hill on Route 301, water pressure from the fire hydrant outside the dwelling was low. The North Highlands Fire Company pumped water from the Hudson River into tanker trucks from Hughsonville, Continental Village, and Garrison. The trucks ferried the water to a large pop-up pool on Main Street to help douse the flames.

Greg Phillips, water and sewer superintendent for Cold Spring, which manages Nelsonville's water supply, told the PCN&R the water pressure is lowest at the hilltop in Nelsonville as the system is gravity-fed.

Phillips, who was on site during the fire, said "approximately 500 gallons per minute were being drawn from the system through the pumpers to the fire, and overall about 60,000 gallons of water were delivered from the hydrants during the event."

Phillips noted that the old cast-iron pipes deliver less water than they used to due to corrosion and tuberculation lining their walls. On the day after Christmas, Phillips met with Mayors Seth Gallagher and Tom Corless of Cold Spring and Nelsonville, respectively, along with Falloon, Merrigan, and assistant Cold Spring fire chief Chris Tobin to discuss the water issues. They resolved to have an "engineered study of the system."

BOTTOM MIDDLE: Firefighters consult as the house fire rages behind them. Rudolf Von Domm ele In an interview Monday, Bob and Astrid Harrison, the homeowners, said they are very grateful to the firefighters who left their own Christmas Eve celebrations to come to their aid. The Harrisons said they are overwhelmed by the support they have received from the community and despite the damage to the house, Mrs. Harrison remained upbeat. "Everything can be replaced," she said. "We will rebuild. Luckily no one got hurt."

One of the family's pets, a small dachshund named Wally, who had come home from college with the Harrison's oldest daughter, Lisa, panicked when the fire broke out and ran away into the house. Wally perished in the blaze. The family has two other dogs that did survive.

A large crane, provided by the Fishkill Fire Department was part of the fire-fighting efforts. Elizabeth Ailes The heat from the fire damaged the siding and broke two windows on the house next door. The same thing happened to a house to the northeast on Crown Street, but there was no apparent damage to the nearly 140-year- old Philipstown Town Hall.

Firefighters from every department in western Putnam County were in action, along with nine other fire companies from southern Dutchess County and northern Westchester.

The Putnam County Fire Investigation Team searched the rubble and believe the blaze may have been ignited by candles placed too close to the Christmas tree.

Putnam Deputy Commissioner of Emergency Services Adam Stiebeling said, "It's a pity the family lost everything in this magnificent home that was recently built, but thank God they escaped and no emergency responders suffered injury."

Fire companies from Cold Spring, North Highlands, Garrison, Continental Village, Putnam Valley, and the Garrison and Philipstown Volunteer Ambulance Corps worked into the early hours of Christmas morning to keep the smouldering embers from re-igniting.

The affected families that the PCN&R was able to reach as of press time said they are not in need of aid at this time. Elizabeth Ailes Elizabeth Ailes Rudolf Von Domm ele Elizabeth Ailes