Building fire at New Castle industrial park proves difficult for fire crews

NEW CASTLE, DE (WTXF) - A huge fire left a huge mess and questions in Delaware early Friday.

It all happened on the 300 block of Bay West Boulevard in New Castle.

16 different fire companies raced to the Riverview Industrial Park..

The fire was out of control - one garage was completely engulfed - another in jeopardy. First responders snapped photos of the flames as it quickly climbed to 2 alarms.

You could see the smoke for miles - SkyFox was over the scene as crews brought it under control.

Here's what made this fire so hard to fight -- a broken fire hydrant.

No one had called in to say it wasn't working after being struck and damaged earlier this year, so firefighters had to find water elsewhere. That delay gave the fire a nasty head start.

The building housed Cirillo Brothers, a company that repairs vehicles and lifts.

Clearly, these charred hulks are a complete loss, and all that's left of one building is the smoking beams.

The fire was so hot; it melted the siding off this nearby garage.

Right now, the concern is environmental -- hazmat teams in bright yellow suits lay booms and shovel up the muck to stop it from reaching nearby wetlands or the Delaware River.

In all the commotion, a 65 year old firefighter from Holloway Terrace suffered a medical emergency just as he arrived at the scene and was taken to the hospital.