Live blogging: House fire on 12th Street. Smoke.

About seven trucks and plenty of firefighters rushed to the scene of a housefire on 12th Street after 5 AM as blocks on the South Side Flats filled with smoke. A three floor house was puffing with smoke from the walls and roof edge. One older gentleman, was taken out of the building on a stretcher. Conditions unknown. Property damage is sure to occur. Two houses saw a good deal of damage. Red Cross and Fire investigators came to the scene too.

After firefighters put a five-foot hole into the roof with a chainsaw and opened the windows, flames were visible from the street.

The action is about a dozen buildings from ours and on the other side of the street.

Meanwhile, Erik is headed to Harrisburg today to play violin in the Capital with the Frick Middle School's strings. He reported that water pressure for his shower was just fine, despite the fire hoses stringing the neighborhood.

Erik, with instrument, headed to school. Meanwhile, South 12th Street, between Bradish and Freyburg, was dripping wet from the fire trucks.

Another neighbor, dressed in a sweater and flip-flops and sporting the scent familiar to those after spending a night around a campfire said, "Hope everyone is okay."

Another resident, a gifted scholar hoping to remain nameless said, "This isn't a good start to Pi Day. But we'll get on the right track by 8:30, we expect."