The cause of the fire that destroyed a Levittown-area landmark has been ruled “undetermined,” the chief fire investigator said.
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Falls Township Fire Marshal Rich Dippolito told LevittownNow.com Friday morning that cause of the blaze at the Levittown Lanes bowling alley along New Falls Road could not be confirmed. The investigation is closed pending additional information.
“We believe we had something occur in the ceiling in the rear of the building, but we couldn’t find the point of origin,” he said.
The blaze early last Wednesday morning ripped through the build quickly and destroyed the structure.
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Dippolito was assisted by the Philadelphia Fire Marshal’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives in the investigation. Several other agencies, including police, worked on the probe.
While the investigation was active, fire investigators and police spoke with neighboring business owners, the family that owns Levittown Lanes, and gathered surveillance video from surrounding businesses.
Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
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Firefighters were called to the bowling alley that featured a bar and pizza place at 5:09 a.m. last Wednesday when the facility was empty.
The flames quickly moved from the rear of the 1950s-era building to the front. The building’s arched bowstring truss roof style allowed the fire to rapidly spread. Flames shot 50 feet into the air at points.
For hours, firefighters doused the building with water and sprayed neighboring apartments to stop the fire from spreading.
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The neighboring apartments suffered melted siding from the heat from the fire, but the structure was otherwise saved from the flames.
No injuries were reported in the fire.
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The future of the bowling alley remains unknown at this point.
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