A fire at a four-unit home in the Country Glen Townhouse Development near Effort ended with two of the residences nearly destroyed on Monday afternoon.

West End Fire Company arrived at the County Acres Court home first, with Polk, Jackson, Blue Ridge, Kunkletown and Tunkhannock fire companies close behind.No one was hurt, and reportedly all animals within the homes, 651, 653, 655 and 657 Country Acres Court, were rescued.“When we got on scene, most of the front side of the structure was off,” West End Fire Chief John McKeever said.“It appeared to have started somewhere in the area of the garbage cans that are right in the center of the two units, outside.”The two center units were heavily scorched, and the roofs were almost completely destroyed. McKeever said the home on the far right, 657 Country Acres Court, also suffered significant damage, with the far left faring the best.Robert Bowman, who has lived in the far left unit, 651 Country Acres Court, for about 20 years, was caught by surprise when he saw the fire police blockade at the end of his street.“I came home with my granddaughter. I was going to spend a few hours with her. They wouldn’t let us in,” Bowman said. “I panicked, I said, ‘Which one is it?’ They kept saying it was the one on the right. I said, ‘Was it the whole building?’ They said they weren’t sure, they couldn’t tell me. So I finally got up here and I see that mine’s just wet, and there’s holes, there’s smoke damage. Thank God nobody got hurt, that’s the main thing.”Strong wind proved to be the most difficult part of dealing with the flames.“The wind definitely was a hindrance on us today,” McKeever said. “It just progressed the fire so rapidly.”McKeever reported the state police and fire marshal would not be investigating, as it was not deemed to be suspicious.Bowman was grateful for the rapid response, which ensured the safety of the residents and their pets.“They were here pretty quick. You always see homes being burnt to the ground because it’s hard to get water here,” Bowman said.“But they did a great job. There’s plenty of people here and they were very professional.“You can’t say enough about firefighters. Everybody runs out, they run in.”