Man seriously injured in Montco fire

A man was flown to Temple University Hospital's Burn Center this morning following a fire gutted one home and damaged another in West Conshohocken, the borough police said.

A police spokeswoman said the fire consumed a house at 102 Front Street and damaged the home at 103 Front. The homeowner of 102 Front was flown by helicopter to Temple for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation.

His condition was not believed to be life threatening, the spokeswoman said.

The two buildings were quickly evacuated by Fire Police and borough patrolmen. No other buildings on the narrow road had to be evacuated, she said.

The presence of emergency equipment made it necessary to cordon off the area, backing up traffic for miles around the fire scene.

Route 23, Fayette Street, Front Street and Matsonford Road all converge in West Conshohocken, where I-76 also exits.

Traffic on Fayette Street approaching the Matsonford Bridge was backed up all the way to Ridge Pike, the full length of the borough, the spokeswoman said.

She said it took her two hours to get to work in the borough's police precinct from Blue Bell.

"People were making U turns to go back up Fayette Street," the spokeswoman said. "I'd rather be late for traffic than end up on a slab."

A traffic accident on Matsonford Road in the same congested area, which was reported at 10:25 a.m., only added to the mess.

Due to the shift change for police, the spokeswoman said, no information was available about the accident, but she said she believed there were some injuries that were not life threatening.