Local

Fire in Sewickley may have been sparked by lightning

SEWICKLEY, Pa. — Authorities are looking into the possibility that a business fire Friday afternoon in Sewickley may have started with a lightning strike.

Officials said the blaze started in a building connected to the Howard Hanna office on Broad Street around 3:30 p.m.

Those living in residential units connected to the building were all accounted for, Howard Hanna real estate agent Linda Taylor said.

Taylor said she was in the building and was among about 15 to 20 real estate agents who smelled smoke.

“We were told to get out very quickly,” she said. “It was unbelievable.”

A building next door -- the Car Barn Shops -- also was evacuated, officials said.

Fire departments from Sewickley, Moon, Aleppo, Leetsdale, Ohio Township and Emsworth responded to the scene.

Channel 11’s news exchange partners at TribLIVE contributed to this report.