05/31/2026
**Update**
In the early morning hours of March 14th 2026, at approximately 2:22 am, station 60 was dispatched to the area of Friend Street for reports of a fully engulfed structure fire, with mutual aid already automatically dropped. Crews responding noticed the glare coming into the village and immediately requested mutual aid engines from Troy Fire Department and Pleasant Hill Fire Department.
Engine 61 responded with a crew of 3 and was first due. Immediately upon 61's arrival, crews were met with heavy fire conditions coming from the windows and walls of the house. Crews immediately pulled a 1 3/4-inch line along with a 2-inch handline and began making a fire attack from the front and side of the structure while safely pushing for interior fire attack, despite some influx in hose pressure. Engine 71 responded and assisted the current Ludlow Fire crews making the fire attack, while other mutual aid units responded to the scene. A search was conducted after getting the fire under control, and upon 61's arrival, they were informed and confirmed that no residents were inside at the time of the fire, only 3 pets, which unfortunately perished due to the fire. Fire crews completed an extensive overhaul process to ensure no reignition can occur.
Engine 61 crew remained on scene after overhaul until approximately 8 am to wait for the Fire Marshal to conduct an investigation into what caused the fire. One Station 60 firefighter was transported to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries and sustained minor injuries to the leg.
We want our residents to know that with a fire of this scale, we may not always get the chance to inform our community or surrounding areas beforehand. We respect our residents and want to give them time to grieve before seeing their life stories on social media or the news. As always, we will do our best to keep our residents and surrounding communities up to date as soon as we can, when the time is right for the affected residents. We will always keep the community we serve informed, especially in the area we cover. The cause of the fire, per the Fire Marshal, was ruled undetermined.
As always, we appreciate our mutual aid departments and the assistance they provide in getting fires like this under control. We want to thank the following departments: Laura Fire Company & Auxiliary West Milton Fire Company Union Township Life Squad Miami County Sheriff's Office Troy, Ohio Troy Firefighters Local #1638 IAFF Pleasant Hill Fire Department, Miami County Ohio
