Keeseville family displaced by blaze

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Firefighters from Clinton and Essex counties spent Wednesday night battling a fierce fire at the home of William and Holly Vedder on North AuSable Street in Keeseville. The Vedders had been renovating the house for several years.
William and Holly Vedder had been renovating their house on North AuSable Street in Keeseville for several years before Wednesday night's fire.

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September 3, 2010

By ANDREA VanVALKENBURG Staff Writer The Press Republican Fri Sep 03, 2010, 03:28 AM EDT

KEESEVILLE — For the last few years, William and Holly Vedder have been busy remodeling their AuSable Street home.

The Keeseville couple worked on the project whenever they could, hoping to make their two-story residence the home they always wanted.

But their dreams went up in flames Wednesday night when a raging fire erupted inside their house.

Despite the efforts of dozens of area firefighters, their home is now a total loss.

Crews were called to the Vedders' home at about 8:30 p.m., when the fire broke out.

Volunteers from the Keeseville, South Plattsburgh, Peru, Ausable Forks, Willsboro, District 3 and Morrisonville fire departments descended on the property at 1884 North AuSable St. for a several-hour battle to quell the flames.

Keeseville Second Assistant Fire Chief Mike Stranahan said that when the first-responders arrived, the blaze was moving through a small room.

But, he said, "in a matter of a minute, it went through the house. It moved extremely quickly."

Neighbors said some of the flames got so intense they threatened a nearby residence and caused a glass gazebo to shatter in the Vedders' backyard.

Luckily though, Stranahan said, volunteers were able to prevent the fire from damaging any of the nearby exposures.

Mrs. Vedder was home at the time but was able to escape without injury.

Heat from the fire and the lingering afternoon humidity left some firefighters with heat exhaustion but no major injuries were reported.

After hours of work and steady streams of water the blaze was finally doused, but the fast-moving flames left only a charred shell of the Vedders' home.

Firefighters remained at the house until early Thursday morning, and investigators returned later that afternoon to continue investigating the cause.

The Vedders, who are insured, have extended family in the area and are believed to be staying with relatives as they recover.