Two Oakland homes damaged in fire on Joe Hammer Square

Pittsburgh emergency services responded to a fire at the 3200 block of Joe Hammer Square at 7:40 p.m. Sunday.

Sonya Toler, a spokesperson for city police, said that one person suffered minor injuries and two homes were affected by the flames. She also said police are still investigating the cause of the fire.

The call was initially dispatched as a three-alarm — meaning the fire department called for additional units and resources to respond to the scene — but the code was called back after personnel arrived and extinguished the fire within the hour.

The fire originated in one house and scorched through the entire interior and exterior of the top-most level, damaging a bay window in the process. The adjacent duplex home suffered minor damage. About 20 firefighters continued to work inside and around the charred building even after the flames were put out.

According to Toler, five people lived in the affected building. Initially the firefighters thought that one person was still inside the house, but after conducting two thorough searches they determined the person was most likely not present during the fire.

Everyone got out of their homes and one woman was treated on scene but did not need to be transported to the hospital. There were no major challenges in this particular case, Toler said.

“Our firefighters have been operating in this city for more than 100 years,”  Toler said. “This is institutional knowledge. This was something they are well trained for.”