UPDATE: Family Escapes Arson Fire, But Cat Perishes

UPDATED: 1:11 p.m., Friday:

The Bristol Township fire marshal has released more information on the arson blaze that struck a van and residence in Bristol Township’s Croydon section Friday morning.

The blaze was reported around 5:15 a.m. at 713 Cedar Avenue after a Bristol Township police officer, who was on a separate call, came upon the fire. The officer found a work van in the driveway fully engulfed in flames, with the fire spreading to the house a few feet away, Fire Marshal Kevin Dippolito said.

Firefighters from the Croydon Fire Company and numerous nearby companies rushed to the scene to fight the fire in the three-story home. Several ambulance squads, including Bucks County Rescue Squad, Bensalem EMS, and Penndel-Middletown Emergency Squad, responded, along with fire police.

The officer alerted the five residents inside, and they were able to escape without injury, Dippolito said.

One cat perished in the blaze, Dippolito said.

A firefighter was transported to the hospital for observation and has since been released, according to the fire marshal.

Dippolito ruled the fire an arson, and the case has been turned over to Bristol Township detectives, he said

Investigators were collecting nearby security camera video as part of the probe.

Firefighters fought flames for more than an hour and were on the scene until just after 8:30 a.m.

The home suffered serious damage in the fire.

Cedar Avenue reopened by mid-morning.

Original Story:

An early morning blaze along Cedar Avenue in Bristol Township’s Croydon section is believed to be an arson.

Around 5:15 a.m., firefighters were called to the home in the 700 block of Cedar Avenue for a vehicle fire, and within moments, the call was upgraded to a house fire.