Firefighter injured as Kensington rowhome fire grows to involve 5 properties

A firefighter suffered minor injuries, officials say, during the response to an early morning rowhome fire in Philadelphia’s Kensington community that grew to involve five homes before it was extinguished.

According to Philadelphia Fire Department Executive Chief Daniel McCarty, the incident unfolded after fire crews were called to a fire at a rowhome near the intersection of B and Tioga streets in Kensington at about 5:09 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

At that time, he said, responding crews found “heavy fire” emitting from the front and rear of the property.

As the flames grew, they spread to four other adjacent homes, according to McCarty.

Overall, five homes were impacted and some residents have been displaced but no one in any of the homes involved in this incident were injured, he said.

However, a firefighter suffered a minor injury during the response to the fire and, McCarty said that individual was being evaluated by EMS officials when NBC10’s crews were at the scene on Wednesday morning.

The flames took about 40 minutes for fire crews to put under control, he said.

Also, McCarty did not discuss what may have started the incident, but he noted that there did not appear to be smoke detectors in any of the homes involved in the fire.

An investigation into the cause of this incident, he said, is ongoing.

This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.