Firefighter’s parents, dog killed in Westmoreland County house fire

ROSTRAVER, Pa. — A Westmoreland County couple died early Sunday in a house fire in Rostraver Township.

The house on Collinsburg Road was engulfed in flames around 2 a.m. when firefighters arrived from their fire station only a half mile away.

“When we arrived, the home was probably 90% fully involved. Heavy fire coming out all sides,” said Joel Koricich, Collinsburg’s fire chief.

It was too late to safe Lloyd Oblack, 83, and his wife, Marie, 81. The couple’s dog also died.

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“I guess the neighbor tried to make entry into the front door, but obviously it was prevented from the fire and the flames,” Koricich said. “I mean, no one can survive going into a blast furnace. So, it really limited us with what we could do.”

Here is a map showing where the fire occurred:

The fire hit close to home for firefighters. Koricich personally knew the couple, who were the parents of one of the members of their fire department.

“Our thoughts are with him and his family. We knew the mom; she would patronize our bingo, which is our fundraiser. So, it’s going to be a certainly a tough road ahead for him and his family,” Koricich said.

Hours after the fire, family members gathered at the house and consoled each other.

The chief said it’s very frustrating.

“All the training, all the experience, and millions of dollars of equipment didn’t mean much and we couldn’t make more of an effort to save them,” Koricich said.

Grief counselors are available for firefighters.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by Rostraver Township police and the Pennsylvania state police fire marshal.

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Cox Media Group