911 caller recounts Saturday’s fire at Carthage business

CARTHAGE, New York (WWNY) - Donald Brown has a view of Agway Services-Simons’ Farm and Home Center from his window in Long Falls Apartments in Carthage.

Early Saturday morning, he called 911 to report the fire that brought the long-time family business to the ground.

“Piece by piece it came down,” he said.

Here’s what he told the 911 dispatcher at around 2:30 Saturday morning.

“I was on the eighth floor at the high-rise in Carthage. I think the feed store across the way is on fire. He said, ‘Okay, we’ll send someone up to check it.’ So a car drove up. The next thing you know the alarm in West Carthage is going,” he said.

Brown, a former West Carthage firefighter, was awakened by his wife who described what she saw as “dancing flames.”

“When it broke through the ceiling and through the roof, the flames gathered higher and higher,” he said.

When we reached out to the family who owns the business on Monday, they weren’t available to speak.

A Facebook message, posted over the weekend, indicates they may be rebuilding. “We will be back and ready to serve our community soon,” the message said.

Carthage fire officials say heat lamps inside the building had started the fire. Some smaller animals did not make it out.

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