Hatfield and Colmar fire departments are battling two fires simultaneously -- a controlled fire at the former The Chalet Apartments off Cowpath Road, that is part of the fire company's live training, and a spontaneous mulch fire on Denbeigh Drive -- in Hatfield Township, across from Hatfield Elementary School.
The mulch fire was located in the yard adjacent to the training site, and tackled by Colmar Fire.
The township is currently under a burn ban that went into effect Wednesday.
(Credit: Jacob Krewson)
Hatfield Vol. Fire Company issued the following statement on its Facebook at 9 a.m.:
The Hatfield Fire Company will be conducting live fire training off of Cowpath Road all day. This class has been scheduled for many months and we have worked with the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Hatfield Township, and the Hatfield Township Fire Marshal’s Office to ensure that we are doing this in the safest manner possible. We have also been in communication will all of the surrounding neighbors and have their support.
Due to the dry conditions, we have taken extra measures so we can continue this training. We have cut down trees that were close too close the building, blown leaves away from the building, and soaked down the land surrounding the area. We have multiple safety hose lines in place that are dedicated for extinguishing any spot fires. We have a crew from Harleysville Community Fire Company on scene with their brush truck and their only job is to monitor the land around the building. A drone with thermal capabilities will also be deployed to check out any fire concerns.
We will have 30+ firefighters, 10+ state fire instructors, and 4 pumpers on scene to safely handle any concerns.
The Chalet Apartments were former seminary and convent residences which are currently owned by Advanced Living Communities, per county land records.
Editor's note: A prior version of this article mistakenly referred to this incident as a house fire, though we later learned it was a scheduled training exercise. We apologize for the error.
Tony Di Domizio is the Managing Editor of NorthPennNow, PerkValleyNow, and CentralBucksNow, and a staff writer for WissNow. Email him at [email protected].
Tony graduated from Kutztown University and went on to serve as a reporter and editor for various news organizations, including Patch/AOL, The Reporter in Lansdale, Pa., and The Morning Call in Allentown, Pa. He was born and raised in and around Lansdale and attended North Penn High School.
Lansdale born. St. Patrick's Day, 1980.
(Credit: Jacob Krewson) 
