WELLSBORO – A couple here were displaced from their house after a fire started Thursday evening on the outside of the residence.

According to Wellsboro Fire Department Second Assistant Chief Chad Boyce, the fire was called in about 6 p.m. by the owners, whom he declined to identify, at their residence at 1310 Round Top Road, Charleston Township.

The caller and his wife were the only occupants of the home and reported they “heard a couple pops” and then started to smell smoke, Boyce said.

“They called their daughter, and then got out. There were no pets in the house,” he added.

Boyce said that when firefighters arrived on the scene, smoke and flames were showing from the rear corner of the structure moving up toward the second floor.

“The first engine came in and hit it on the outside, and we then went inside to attack the second floor, and with ventilation were able to put the fire out quickly. It was pretty windy but didn’t really affect what we were doing a whole lot,” Boyce said. “Once we had the line inside, I felt more confident they would get the fire out. We had a quick response from our guys and had it out in about a half hour after arrival.”

The house, which is about 100 years old, was not destroyed by the fire, but utilities were turned off as a precaution, Boyce said.

The home was not insured, he said.

“They are staying with their daughter, but the house could be salvaged, and they could possibly live there if they fix it and get the utilities turned back on,” he said. “Damage was contained to a closet area in a bedroom upstairs and a bathroom downstairs.”

Though the fire “appeared to be electrical in nature, we are calling it undetermined,” he said, noting the blaze is not considered suspicious.

Boyce said three fire departments were on the scene with equipment and manpower.

“We had one engine at Hamilton Lake, our tanker and we called for Middlebury and Mansfield’s tanker just in case. Mansfield’s was on standby at Hamilton Lake,” Boyce said.

“I just wanted to make sure we had water in case the wind wasn’t a factor,” he added.

About two dozen firefighters from Wellsboro and Middlebury responded to the scene.

There were no injuries.

A wildfire at Stony Fork Campground was called in just after that, which Morris Fire Department took care of, he said.

“It was fairly small and they put it out quickly,” he added.

Though a burn ban is not officially in place, Boyce said he would advise against outdoor burning because of the dry underbrush and windy conditions.