PCFD battles 8th St. structure fire

Panama City Fire Department responded to an early morning structure fire Wednesday at 607 East 8th Street.

PCFD Battalion Chief Jerome Fleeman states fire firefighters arrived on scene around 3:15 a.m. to find the structure full engulfed in flames.

“The initial attack began about 5 minutes after the call was received,” said Fleeman in a press release. “ … Once a supply line was established, the monitor was deployed, increasing the water applied to the structure. After knocking down the bulk of the fire, additional hand lines were pulled to thoroughly extinguish all remaining hot spots.”

The structure was vacant; however, Fleeman states there have been reports of vagrants frequenting the location.

An adjacent structure reportedly suffered some exterior damage due to exposure to the fire. The cause of the fire was undetermined due to the extensive fire damage throughout the entire structure.