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MOVE house in West Philly damaged by fire

The Philadelphia Fire Department responded shortly before 8 p.m. to 4506 Kingsessing Ave. and found heavy fire throughout the three-story twin house.

Firefighters work to extinguish a fire on the 4500 block of Kingsessing Avenue in Philadelphia on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023.
Firefighters work to extinguish a fire on the 4500 block of Kingsessing Avenue in Philadelphia on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023.Read moreElizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer

A large fire burned a home Thursday night in West Philadelphia used by the MOVE organization, fire officials said.

No injuries were reported.

The Philadelphia Fire Department responded shortly before 8 p.m. to 4506 Kingsessing Ave. and found heavy fire throughout the three-story twin house.

The blaze was declared under control just before 9:10 p.m.

MOVE, often described as a back-to-nature activist group, uses both sides of the twin with 4504 Kingsessing Ave., often referred to as the headquarters of MOVE.

It was not immediately clear if both homes were damaged.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.

In 1985, the city infamously bombed the MOVE headquarters at 6221 Osage Avenue in the city’s Cobbs Creek section, causing a massive fire that killed 11 MOVE members and destroyed 61 neighboring homes.