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Two firefighters suffered fall injuries and two more firefighters were treated for dehydration and heat exhaustion while fighting a brush fire Saturday afternoon that burned an estimated 8 to 10 acres in Logan Township.
About 50 to 60 volunteer firefighters responded to the fire, which ignited in a wooded area between Veterans Memorial Highway and the Norfolk Southern railroad tracks, close to Leopold Park.
The fire was believed to have started after a transformer malfunctioned about 11:30 a.m., causing electrical outages in many sections of Altoona and surrounding areas. At 1 p.m., GPU Energy's website was reporting 2,000 properties without electricity, a number that dropped during the afternoon as crews restored power.
"We got called out around noon," United Fire Department Station 14 District Chief Tony Tanzi said Saturday night. "It was a tricky fire because the area was fairly steep and the wind kept picking up."
Smoke could be seen from several miles away.
Firefighters from 11 companies and the state Bureau of Forestry responded to calls for help, with the bureau arranging for a helicopter to dump water at the site. In addition to the water on their tanker trucks, firefighters had water access from a hydrant along Veterans Memorial Highway.
"We had a lot of water," Tanzi said. "But the woods are very dry right now."
Firefighters remained at the site through early evening hours.
"We start releasing units around 5 p.m.," Tanzi said. "But we had people on scene until about 6:45 … and a lot of tired firefighters."
Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 946-7456.