WYOMING COUNTY, Pa. — A frightening scene at Stone Hedge Golf Course outside Tunkhannock around 2:45 p.m as dark plumes of smoke rose above the greens.
"A guy was checking in for a tournament here, came right up to me and said, 'hey, we're going to have to cancel this tournament because the condos are on fire," said Adam Charles, Stone Hedge Golf Professional.
At first, Golf Pro Adam Charles didn't believe his ears, but quickly came upon the building, roaring with fire. Fire officials say one family was home at the time.
"I ran out back and I saw it. The first thing I did was call 911, the second thing I did was call my friend that lives at the condos right over there and said, 'hey, get your newborn out and all your cats and whatever you can, just get out of that place as fast as possible," said Charles.
"As we were responding to the scene we could see the header from a distance away from our station. When I pulled in and arrived, the first one and a half condos were well involved, with a heavy wind that was pushing it to the third," said Chief Eric Kukuchka, Triton Hose Company.
Nineteen fire companies from three counties rushed to the scene, trying to bat down the flames as the fire spread to all four units.
"We needed as much help as we could. The heat is a big factor right now, especially when you have an incident like this," said Kukuchka.
Our cameras were rolling as one firefighter was helped from the scene. The chief says he was suffering from heat exhaustion and was taken to the hospital for treatment.
Hole eleven was closed as firefighters pumped water from the small pond on the course and battled the blaze just up the hill.
Golfers were out on the course when fire crews arrived, even helping firefighters set hose lines according to officials. Charles says he expects the hole to reopen for play Saturday.
"The course itself got lucky, the owners of the house, unfortunately, did not. I feel terrible for them and what happened," said Charles.
Fire officials tell me the units have been destroyed and three families have been displaced.
The Red Cross is coming in to assist them. A State Police Fire Marshal has been called in to investigate the cause.
See news happening?