Firefighters are battling a house fire in North Castle Thursday afternoon, some from departments that responded to a propane fire in Bedford just hours earlier.
The fire is severe, North Castle Police Chief Geoffrey Harisch confirmed to Patch. "It's not good," he added.
The fire—at 7 Rustling Lane—is in the Banksville Fire District and has a Bedford postal address, Harisch said.
Banksville Fire Chief Al Farquhar told reporters covering the blaze that dispatch happened near 4:30 p.m. It took about one hour to an hour and 15 minutes to get the fire under control, he added.
About half of the home was engulfed by flames, with the left portion resembling a shell. It sustained "serious structural damage," Farquhar added.
The right side sustained smoke and water damage, Farquhar told press. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, Farquhar added. The smell of fire and viability of smoke was palpable near the home, which is on a long side road.
A family that lives in the home reported the fire, North Castle Police said. Farquhar said that the initial call came in for a car fire, while the house was found to be on fire upon arrival. A vehicle was subsequently removed from the garage.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, according to Farquhar.
Firefighters from several neighboring communities are present, including Bedford, Bedford Hills and Mount Kisco, Katonah, Chappaqua, Armonk, Pound Ridge and Greenwich. Banksville and Greenwich had tankers available to provide water.
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