Justin Landsiedel of Lake Winola Fire Company Station 12 carries one of two dogs rescued from a house fire on Whites Ferry Road near Lake Winola on Thursday. TIMES-SHAMROCK PHOTO/MICHAEL J. MULLEN

BY ROBERT L. BAKER

Wyoming County Press Examiner

FALLS TWP. – A Wyoming County home about a mile west of Lake Winola was gutted by a late Thursday morning fire.

Lake Winola Asst. Fire Chief Gene Dziak said a passerby saw flames come out of the roof of a home on Whites Ferry Road, and called the fire in to the Wyoming County 911 center around 10:35 a.m.

No one was in the home at the time of the fire, but two dogs were rescued at the scene, Dziak said.

He added that the fire appears to have been caused by an overheated woodburner.

Dziak said that frigid weather created some difficulty in establishing a water source, and he appreciated an assist from Nicholson, Meshoppen, Triton, Dalton and Factoryville.

Noting an earlier fire Thursday near Factoryville, Dziak said, “The weather creates a serious problem for rural firefighters and plays havoc with limited resources.”

He noted that no one was injured at the scene, but that four residents of the home were displaced by the fire and would likely be staying with family members.

Dziak said the scene was cleared about 2:30 p.m.