Walden fire heavily damages three-story building, firefighter burned

A large section of a three-story house at 15 Riverview Street collapsed Friday after fire ripped through the Walden residence, sending one firefighter to Garnet Health Medical Center in the Town of Wallkill with burns and drawing a two-alarm response from across Orange County.

Walden Fire Department command arrived to find heavy smoke and fire on the first floor of the three-floor home, with flames spreading to the second floor, according to a street report from 1st Responder News. By the time crews got control of the scene, the building was heavily damaged and no longer stood as a stable structure.

The response quickly expanded beyond Walden. Fire crews came from Montgomery, Coldenham, the City of Newburgh, Wallkill, Vails Gate, Pine Bush and Orange Lake, while Cronomer Valley and Washingtonville stood by. Montgomery EMS also responded, along with police from Walden and Montgomery, signaling a fast-moving incident that reached well beyond a single department.

Orange County’s Division of Fire Services says it coordinates county fire resources and administers the County Fire Mutual Aid Plan, the system that helps move companies and equipment where they are needed when a fire grows beyond the first alarm. In a village of 6,818 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 count, a fire of this size can strain local resources and ripple through surrounding communities.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation Friday. For now, the clearest facts are the damage at 15 Riverview Street, the collapse of part of the house, and the injury to a firefighter who was taken for burn treatment. Garnet Health Medical Center says its emergency department operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, underscoring the seriousness of the response.