Firefighters put out fire at VFW in Everson Thursday evening
The Everson VFW at 401 Shipley St. caught fire Thursday when a light fixture at the rear of the building malfunctioned.
Jeff King, fire chief of Everson Volunteer Fire Company, said the fire spread from the light to the wall, and then to the roof of the building.
King said 15 to 20 patrons were inside at the time and got out safely; however, since they were on the other side of the building, they did not initially notice the fire.
“Without the neighbor visibly seeing it, nobody else would have seen it,” King said.
King said a neighbor called the fire in at 9:40 p.m. and rushed over to the building to alert those inside.
King said the fire took about 20 minutes to get under control and estimated the damage at $10,000 for repairs to the building and $10,000 for contents.
In addition to fire damage, the building sustained water damage from holes cut into the building by firefighters to gain access to the fire.
The volunteer fire departments that responded to the fire were Everson, Scottdale, Bullskin Township, Connellsville Township, East Huntington, Mount Pleasant and Dawson.