AHOSKIE – The residence of a 10-year veteran of the Ahoskie Rural Fire Department was gutted by a blaze near here Thursday night.

Ahoskie Fire Chief Michael Bradley said the singlewide mobile home owned by Jerrall Gatling at 116 Magnolia Lane (located off Hall Siding Road) was a total loss.

“Jerrall wasn’t home at the time of the fire, but came after being notified that his residence was on fire,” said Bradley. “He was among the firefighters on the scene that helped put the fire out. Thankfully there were no injuries.”

Bradley stated that the fire call came in at 8:06 p.m. Ahoskie (Stations 1 and 2) sent five units and 15 firefighters to the scene. They saw heavy fire coming from the front of the home upon arrival, Bradley said.

The Union Volunteer Fire Department also responded with two units and 10 firefighters.

“We thank the Union guys for their help,” Bradley said.

The last Ahoskie unit cleared the scene at around 10 p.m. However, a flare-up on Friday morning sent the Ahoskie firefighters back to the scene for a short period of time.

Bradley said the cause of the fire is under investigation.