ALIQUIPPA, Pa. — A fire damaged Cesina’s Sausage Company in Aliquippa on Monday afternoon, leaving extensive damage inside the longtime family business.
Fire crews were called to the building on Kennedy Boulevard shortly before 4 p.m.
Multiple fire companies responded and worked for nearly three hours to put out the fire.
Part of the roadway was shut down as crews battled the flames.
Co-owner John Costanza said the smoke and fire quickly filled the building.
“When I say you couldn’t see from this side to that side, we couldn’t even see the building,” Costanza said.
Firefighters said the damage inside is extensive, including damage to part of the ceiling.
The business is normally closed on Mondays, but one of the owners said an employee had been inside nearly an hour before the fire, picking up items for a delivery, and had already left.
The family said they learned about the fire from a neighbor.
“He got a phone call from our neighbor who said the building is on fire,” one owner said.
Channel 11 watched as the family and first responders carried out items the owners described as irreplaceable.
Those items included old photographs and memorabilia from the business.
“What our parents passed on to us. Pictures of the old building, the old business,” said co-owner Charlene Costanza-Tranelli.
The owners said they are not sure what caused the fire.
They plan to work with their insurance company to replace expensive equipment damaged by soot and water.
Cesina’s Sausage Company has operated in Aliquippa for more than 100 years.
Despite the damage, the owners said they plan to reopen.
“We have our home; we have our family. Nobody was injured. All of it is replaceable,” Costanza-Tranelli said.
The fire marshal is investigating the cause.
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