A fast-burning row of arborvitae nearly caused a catastrophe late Saturday night.
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Amid extremely dry conditions and just feet away from an apartment building, firefighters were dispatched to the area behind the closed Wells Fargo Bank in the Pine Watson Shopping Center on Pine Street (Route 413) in Langhorne Borough around 10 p.m.
The first reports were for a row of 10- to 15-foot-tall arborvitae that were ablaze.
Langhorne-Middletown Fire Company Chief Frank Farry arrived to find the row of about a dozen on fire, and volunteers got to work extinguishing the flames.
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“It was burning pretty quick and towards the apartments, but we were able to contain it before it got to the apartments,” Farry said, remarking the fire could have been much worse.
No injuries were reported.
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Witnesses reported that a group of people were shooting off fireworks and mortar shells nearby in the moments leading up to the fire, Farry said. The Bucks County Fire Marshal’s Office and Pennsylvania State Police were investigating the incident as of Sunday.
Farry said the dry conditions meant the plants quickly burned.
“Thankfully this happened when people were awake and businesses were open and could report it,” said Farry, a longtime volunteer firefighter and Republican state senator. “Imagine if this happened at 2 a.m.”
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Farry reminded the public of the state’s fireworks laws and advised locals to be safe.
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Below are the state’s fireworks regulations:
- They cannot be ignited or discharged on public or private property without express permission of the property owner.
- They cannot be discharged from or directed at a vehicle or building.
- They cannot be directed at another person.
- They cannot be discharged within 150 feet of a building or vehicle.
- They cannot be discharged while the person is under the influence of alcohol, or a controlled substance or another drug.
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