DONEGAL TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Four days after a blaze destroyed three buildings at a private zoo in Westmoreland County, fire crews were called to the park again Friday morning.
Channel 11's Dave Bondy reported three cabins were damaged by the fire. One of those buildings is where the general manager of the park lived, another stored food for the animals and the third was a rental property that was vacant.
Firefighters worked quickly to keep the flames from spreading.
Matthew Dumbauld said he had to get his wife and several animals out of the building before going door to door to make sure everyone was safe.
“We went door to door and actually ended up kicking in the one door because firefighters didn’t want to wait for the key,” Dumbauld said.
“There’s a double roof on there that was giving us a bit of difficulty. The fire got in between the roofs to make it a little harder to get to,” said Chestnut Ridge Fire Chief Shawn Kestner.
Dumbauld told Bondy that no animals were hurt in the blaze and they will operate on normal business hours Monday.
“Everything is good to go. We are definitely going to be open and the zoo is unaffected by this. The only thing that will be affected is the one suite we’re going to have to rebuild,” Dumbauld said.
https://twitter.com/WPXI_DaveBondy/status/496273146597867520
The nearby Log Cabin Inn and Suites, located on the property, was evacuated as a precaution and 13 people were brought to a nearby Holiday Inn for the night.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but crews believe it could have been electrical.