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Golf Manor fire chief reports RV blaze at self‑storage, cites propane tank change and hydrant access issues
Summary
At the Jan. 14 Village of Golf Manor meeting the fire chief described an RV fire at the rear of Golf Manor Self Storage, an injured occupant treated at UC, an apparent accidental ignition while changing a propane tank, extended mutual‑aid response and ongoing ambulance manufacturing delays.
At the Jan. 14 meeting of the Village of Golf Manor council, the fire chief reported an RV fire at the rear of Golf Manor Self Storage and described how hydrant access and delayed calls complicated the response.
The fire chief said the village fire department recorded 667 calls for 2024, and that call volume was already high in 2025: “as of this afternoon … we’re already up to 200 for the year just in the 1st 14 days of the month.” He said the storage‑property blaze involved a recreational vehicle from the 1980s, left a male occupant with burns to his left ankle who was treated at “UC,” and resulted in a total loss of the vehicle.
The chief said surveillance video showed a slow progression of the fire and that the occupant had been changing a propane tank for a portable grill and using a portable propane heater inside the RV; investigators and the chief described that sequence as the likely accidental ignition. “He was changing a propane tank from a portable grill. He had a portable, propane heater in part of the RV. That seems to be the cause,” the chief said.
The chief told council members the initial 911 call did not come immediately after ignition; a passerby near Atlantic Foods on Section Road later reported seeing visible fire. Because the fire occurred at the back of the storage property, crews had to lay a long supply line from a hydrant at the Coffee Bean roasting facility; the chief said roughly 1,400 feet of supply line was deployed in cold weather to bring water to the scene. Mutual‑aid companies from Reading, Norwood and nearby jurisdictions assisted, the chief said.
The village is coordinating with the storage company and insurers to sort coverage for the occupant and property, and the chief said the department has requested county 911 call recordings and radio traffic to better understand the timing of the calls. He said the occupant’s cell phone burned in the fire and that the office at the storage property likely placed the later, locating call.
The chief also reported personnel and equipment matters: the fire board approved raises for part‑time personnel to improve firefighter recruitment and retention; the village ordered an ambulance in April 2022 but remains on a multi‑year manufacturer backlog, and the chief said chassis shortages from Ford have left ambulance manufacturers three to three‑and‑a‑half years behind. “All the manufacturers are 3 to 3 and a half years out right now,” he said.
The chief said he is preparing the department’s final 2024 annual report and expects to distribute it to council by the second week of February ahead of the next meeting.
Council members asked clarifying questions about property boundaries and hydrant locations; the chief confirmed the incident occurred within the village and noted access challenges at the rear of the property.
The report was informational only because two council members were absent and no formal votes could be taken at the Jan. 14 meeting.
The council requested the chief provide the 2024 final report at the February session.
