A smoke detector helped alert residents that a fire was smoldering inside a rooming house at 433 E. Main St., Batavia.

"My wife heard a beeping noise and she smelled smoke," said resident Joe Allegue. "We opened the door, we’re in apartment 11, and the black smoke just billowed right into the room and covered us."

Allegue said he started yelling, "Fire," and got his wife out then called 9-1-1.

The basement fire was reported to Genesee County Dispatch at 4:16 p.m., and the first city crews were on scene within minutes. Smoke was already billowing from the basement and working its way up to the second and third floors.

Firefighters faced some significant structural obstacles in fighting the fire, according to Chief James Maxwell, which eventually forced firefighters to withdraw from the interior of the complex.

"We made several attempts at the basement, but by that time, it was already on the first and second floors," Maxwell said. "The way the interior structure was portioned with the different apartments, we were just chasing it around from room to room. Eventually it got in the attic, so at that point, the safest option was to go to a defensive operation."

The city already had Ladder Truck 15 on scene, pouring water on the roof from the southwest corner of the building. Town of Batavia's Ladder Truck 25 was brought to the scene to attack the fire from the rear roof area.

According to tax records, the structure was built in 1950. That was near the end of the use of balloon-framing construction in the United States, according to Wikipedia.

In balloon framing, the walls of a building are continuously open from the basement to the attic, making it easier for a fire to climb quickly up the interior of the walls.

The building is a total loss. Fire crews were still on scene at midnight, with active firefighting lasting at least five hours.

At 11 p.m., investigators were calling for water to be pumped from the basement so they could begin the work of trying to determine the cause of the fire.

Eleven people living in eight boarding rooms and two apartments were displaced by the fire.

That's the hardest part said property owner Terry Platt. While the nature of insurance on this type of rental property means he may never fully recover the financial loss, it's sad, he said, seeing his tenants go through something like this.

"They’re the type of residents who really can’t afford the insurance to be able to cover all of their contents and of course they’re going to lose everything now," said Platt, who acquired the property in 1990. "That’s the worst part. It’s just sad. The rest of it is just a big headache, but it’s worse for all the tenants. They’re walking out with no shoes on their feet. It’s just sad to see that happen."

Platt said the loan on the property was nearly paid off and once it was, he was going to be able to invest in upgrades to the apartments.

Within hours of the fire being reported, Red Cross officials were beginning to assist residents in finding temporary housing, but Platt said there's a shortage of rooming houses available at the rate his tenants could afford to pay -- he was charging from $75 to $85 per week -- so finding long-term housing for many of the residents could prove difficult.

All 11 residents were safely accounted for within two hours of the fire being reported. At one point, one resident was thought to possibly still be in an apartment. The inset picture is of Platt trying to recall, so he could tell a firefighter, the best way to get to the apartment.

Doug Yeomans also submitted a series of photos from the fire.

Disclosure: Terry Platt is my landlord.

More pictures after the jump:

A fire is reported at a house at 433 E. Main St. in Batavia, between Harvester and Vine. City firefighters on scene say smoke is showing.

The fire is believed to have begun in the basement. Streets in the vicinity are being shut down to traffic.

Smoke rapidly began pouring from all three stories of the building soon after firefighters arrived.

UPDATE (5:07 p.m.): Until about 10 minutes ago, fire crews believed someone was still inside the building, now that is being re-evaluated.

The building is owned by Terry Platt of Platt Properties in Batavia. It is a rooming house with eight rooms and two apartments.

UPDATE (5:11 p.m.): No one was found inside during the initial search of the building. The landlord is providing the residents' names and contact information so fire personnel can account for all the occupants. Then the premises will be searched again.

UPDATE (5:26 p.m.): The fire is not yet under control. Smoke is still coming from the building. Elba Fire Department responded as mutual aid to the scene and Mercy EMS is also there. Oakfield Fire Department is asked to fill in at the station for the Town of Batavia, which also responded to the fire.

American Red Cross is called to stage at Wilson Farms on Main Street to provide aid to seven people. There seems to be some trouble getting water for one of the hoses.

UPDATE (5:49 p.m.): There is still fire on the first and second stories. All interior firefighters are ordered out and to muster in front for an accountability roll call. A cop on scene said they are going to "flood the building." All occupants are out and accounted for.

UPDATE (5:56 p.m.): Flames six feet high are now shooting out of the roof. National Grid is called to the scene.

UPDATE (6:05 p.m.): A plume of black and gray smoke is visible for at least a hundred feet above the house.

UPDATE 6:45 p.m. (by Howard) Town of Batavia's ladder, Engine 25, is on scene. It looks like the plan is to bring it around to the back of the house and pour as much water on the roof as possible. The construction of the house, built around the turn of the century or before, has "balloon" walls, making it possible for flames to shoot up from the basement all the way to the attic. Once the fire got into the walls, it became very difficult to fight from the inside.

11:04 p.m.:  City Engine 12 is back in service. Town of Batavia Engine 18 is back in service. Genesee County Emergency Management is going back in service. A pump has been requested in the basement to start pumping out water so that the investigation can be started.

11:17 p.m.: All Town of Batavia units back in service. City personnel who responded to the second and third alarms being released.

1:17 a.m.: Ladder 15 back in quarters.

Le Roy Police say a 37-year-old Leicester woman stole from her employer earlier this year by creating forged cash cards.

Deanna L. Leach, of 5576 Gibsonville Road, Leicester, faces 11 felony counts of forgery, 2nd.

Det. John Condidorio said Leach allegedly altered 11 cash cards worth $50 each while employed as a manager at the business. Leach reportedly failed to log the cards in order to cover up her alleged crime.

A man who reportedly tried to steal a television from Kmart has fled on foot and was last spotted running behind Jerry Arena's Pizzaria.

The subject is described as white male, wearing a brown and white hat, brown sweater and blue jeans.

The suspect fled Kmart, leaving the TV on Kmart's property.

Multiple law enforcement units are responding to the area.

UPDATE: Before we could even get this published, the suspect was caught on West Main Street.

An Attica man with two prior DWI convictions was allegedly found driving drunk with children in his car on East Main Street in Batavia last night.

Taken into custody on $25,000 bail and charged with a felony under Leandra's Law was 40-year-old Roland J. Reed, of Exchange Street, Attica.

Reed reportedly had a 2-year-old and an 8-month-old in the car when he was stopped at 11:24 p.m. in the area of 505 East Main St., Batavia, by Deputy Christopher Parker.

Besides a felony DWI and the Leandra's Law felony charge, Reed is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, unlawful possession of marijuana, unlicensed operation, moving from lane unsafely and refusal to take a breath test.

The children's mother was reportedly a passenger in the vehicle.

Here are four recent news items from the Genesee County Economic Development Center:

• Gov. David Paterson awarded GCEDC a $3.9-million grant to upgrade the short rail line in and around the new Genesee County Agri-Business Park off of Route 5 in the Town of Batavia. The grant money comes from a 2005 bond act for transportation infrastructure in New York. The 202-acre park offers shovel ready industrial land for food processors. Business Facilities Magazine recently named Genesee and Livingston counties as the second-best food processing area in the nation, citing both the Oakta Milk Products facility and the new agri-park in its article.
• National Grid has awarded GCEDC with $275,000 in grants to further the development of the Buffalo East Tech Park in Pembroke. The 300-acre site is adjacent the Pembroke exit of the Thruway, giving the development area easy access to Buffalo and Rochester. Sixty-seven acres of the park are shovel ready for business development.
• Sale-tax exemptions totaling $12,000 were awarded to Bruce Scofield, LLC, for reopening a transfer station and recycling center at 8620 Sanders Road, Stafford. The location will serve area residents and businesses with a facility to dispose of waste and recyclables. The facility has been approved by the DEC to receive 150 tons of solid waste per day and 75 tons of recyclables per day. For every $1 of tax exemption, the project is expected to return $141 in public benefit over the next 10 years. Scofield will invest $150,000 in the project.
• Pineyard Acres, LLC, of 6256 Clinton St. Road, Stafford, is receiving a $29,500 property-tax exemption, a $14,600 sales-tax exemption and a $4,000 mortgage-tax exemption for expansion of its business from 1,400 square feet to 5,600 square feet. For every $1 of tax exemption, the local economy should receive $210 in public benefit over the next 10 years, according to the GCEDC.  Pineyard Acres is expected to invest $335,000 in the expansion.

Austin W. Smith, 24, of Batavia, is charged with DWI and aggravated DWI. Smith was reportedly involved in an accident at 8:24 p.m., Saturday, on Route 262, Town of Elba. The accident was investigated by State Police. (initial report)

Steven M. Keaton, 38, of 50 Gilbert St., Le Roy, is charged with three counts of criminal contempt, 2nd. Keaton is accused of violating an order of protection by being with the protected person on three different occasions.

Cassandra Kay Dembik, 18, of Pratt Road, Batavia, is charged with unlawfully dealing with a child. Dembik is accused of hosting an underage drinking party.

Lawrence Joseph Owczarczak, 55, of West Point Drive, East Amherst, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Owczarczak is accused of grabbing a young man by the arm on Friday evening.

David N. Taplin, 33, of 16 Skyline Circle, Brockport, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Taplin reportedly turned himself in at Batavia Police headquarters in regard to a bench warrant.

Jerry T. Saddler Jr., of 112 State St., Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Saddler is accused of violating an order of protection by allegedly contacting a woman he was barred from contacting.

Gregory Seppe, 52, with no permanent address, is charged with criminal trespass, 2nd. Seppe is accused of entering a dwelling on Columbia Avenue without permission. Seppe was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Nicholas A. Antonucci, 23, of 4192 Broadway Road, Alexander, is charged with disorderly conduct and unlawful possession of marijuana. Antonucci is accused of repeatedly shouting obscenities at 10:45 p.m., Friday, while in a parking lot at 214 E. Main St., Batavia.

Jodi L. Reed, 38, of 7428 Pearl St. Road, Oakfield, is charged with possession of a forged instrucment, 2nd, and petit larceny. Reed is accused of passing a forged check at a local bank on Aug. 3.

Reader Amanda sent in this photo of the sunrise over Bergen this morning.

A car accident has been reported on the Thruway in the area of mile marker 385 in the westbound lane.

There is air bag deployment.

No reports on injuries yet.

Town of Batavia Fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

UPDATE 11:27 p.m: A vehicle is blocking a lane. No word yet on injuries.

UPDATE 11:36 p.m.:  No definitive word on injuries, but this is not sounding serious.

As part of Emergency Preparedness, the Town of Batavia Volunteer Fire Department held an open house today at its Lewiston Road headquarters. In addition to activities for children, tours of their fire trucks, equipment demonstrations and hot dogs, the volunteers were giving away smoke detectors.

Also, Lt. Nate Fix took me for a ride to the top of the ladder truck.

More pictures after the jump:

A vehicle with two occupants went off the roadway in the westbound lane at mile marker 394 on the Thruway. Injuries are unknown.

East Pembroke Fire Department and Mercy EMS are responding.

UPDATE (2:27 p.m.): Responders could not locate the vehicle. Units are put back in service.

When Mr. Fire comes knockin' at your door, make sure you know what to do!

That's the gist of the message Sgt. Major William Joyce, of the East Pembroke Fire Department, had for Pembroke Primary School students last week.

He and firefighters from various districts came to talk to the kids about the importance of being prepared for fire-related emergencies.

These are some of the trucks that pulled up to the school in the morning, much to the delight of the children:

Part of being prepared for a fire, according to Joyce, is developing an evacuation plan, which has to include a designated spot for the family to meet outside the home.

"And please don't pick your mom or dad's truck," Joyce said. "Mom and dad might have gone to the store or something, which means the truck could be gone."

He recommended picking a neighborhood tree or telephone pole, because "last time I checked, trees and telephone poles don't walk away."

Secondly, Joyce stressed the importance not only of getting out of a burning house, but also of staying out.

"Don't go back in for your dog or your cat or your favorite toy," he said. "You can always buy a new dog, cat or toy at the store, but there's no store I know of where your parents can get another little boy or girl."

Families should practice these and other safety measures through home fire drills, according to Joyce.

"Monday night is the best time for fire drills," he said, "because the firefighters are at the hall and we have all the equipment we need ready."

And in case one of these little ones were to get stuck in the house during a fire, Joyce stressed one very important thing they would need to remember:

"Don't be afraid of the firefighters."

He acknowledged that firefighters can look kind of scary when they come crawling into the house or room in the dark, masked, dressed in heavy gear, and breathing like Darth Vader.

Joyce explained that the masks and suits are to protect the firefighters, and that they crawl in order to avoid the fire, which is going to be "up above."

To help the kids out, the firefighters did a little demonstration in the gymnasium, with the lights off -- the kids were asked to shout out "help," as if they were trapped in a fire and needed rescue:

Some practical tips for fire prevention and safety were included in the presentation as well. Some of these were:

• Remember to empty your wastebaskets

• Keep the doors unblocked

• Change your smoke detector's battery regularly

• Don't try to put out the fire yourself; call the fire department

The assembly was followed by some hands-on activities for the kids, including tours of the buses, a look at firefighters' equipment, and trying on firemen's uniforms. These activities went on for most of the day, with classes taking turns touring the rigs:

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS:

On the way back to my car I got a look a the school's playground, which I thought looked pretty cool:

Candidate for State Senate Marc Coppola put out this news release today, calling for "streamlined economic policies to encourage development and job growth."

The candidate for New York State Senate’s 61st District says too many layers of bureaucracy and red tape discourages small- and medium-size businesses. The end result is lost time and money that should be put into business building not government.

Coppola claims that there are too many layers of bureaucracy for entrepreneurs to deal with when attempting to open or expand their business.

“Current or prospective business owners get frustrated with the amount of paperwork and levels of government that they have to go through to open a business, let alone asking for assistance,” Coppola said.

Small- and medium-sized businesses are especially hurt because they don’t have the time or resources to hire lawyers and consultants to deal with all of the bureaucratic red tape.

“Just look on any wall of our local restaurants," he said. They have so many permits from so many different agencies that it could be wallpaper."

State economic development policies can provide safety for consumers while providing a "one-stop shop" for business owners so that they can spend less time dealing with government entities and more time growing their business and creating jobs.

“The state has the ability and authority to do this and should act swiftly in doing so. The ‘silver-bullet’ mentality for creating jobs in Upstate New York has gotten us nowhere. It’s time we recognize that and provide assistance to entrepreneurs, not barriers."

An overhaul of the state's economic development policies and consolidation of services and agencies is badly needed.

“(We should create) a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs in order to assist them as well as spend less money on administration and more on job creation."

He also claims that politicians too often say that they are working to help business and job growth with no details or plan of how to do so other than the customary, “cut taxes” approach.

Genesee County Republicans gathered at 5 Jackson St. today to officially open their local campaign headquarters.

More than 100 people showed up, according to Legislator Jay Grasso, who added that many new faces were in the crowd.

Above, Steve Hawley, left and County Clerk Don Read with a member of the party.

Destin Danser submitted four photos from the Notre Dame vs. Pembroke game. Pembroke moved 5-1 with the 20-13 victory over Notre Dame (3-3).

More photos after the jump:

In Cal-mum and Leroy's 77th game against each other, Cal-mum defeated Leroy 42 to 0. Since it was Leroy's homecoming game, the stands were filled with excited fans and school attendees. Unfortunately for them, Leroy took a hard loss.

Jon Cappotelli had 19 carries, 98 yards, 1 touchdown run.

Christian Hallett had 1 carry, 41 yards, 1 touchdown run.

Trevor Haut had 6 carries, 28 yards, 1 touchdown run.

Tyler Lauffer had 10 carries, 57 yards, 2 recoveries and 2 touchdowns.

A car has hit a guardrail on Route 262 just east of Elba.

There are possible injuries.

Elba Fire and Mercy EMS being dispatched.

UPDATE 8:27 p.m.: Accident is located west of the village line toward Weatherwax Road.

Victory was sweet for the Batavia Blue Devils on Friday as they took down Bishop-Kearney 38-20.

It was Senior Night and the Van Detta Stadium stands were packed with friends and family as 13 varsity players appeared on their home field for probably the last time.

"I'm just so happy for the seniors," said Head Coach Dan Geiger. "These guys have just worked so hard all year. They're a team that really touches my heart and their work ethic and their stick-to-it-iveness and come out on Senior Night and have a big game, I'm just really proud of them."

It was a big night for senior Ryan Pyatt who ran for 237 yards and scored his first three touchdowns of the season.

Another senior, QB Aaron Gugel, whose 2010 was his first full season in his high-school career, also had a big night, completing four of eight passes for 91 yards and a touchdown. He also had 11 tackles on defense.

Sophomore Justin Washington had four big catches, including one for a touchdown. He gained 81 yards.

Senior Spencer Stressing helped lead the defense with two and a half sacks while Senior Kyle King made eight tackles.

At 2-4, Batavia travels to Wellsville for a must-win game Friday. If the Blue Devils can beat Wellsville (0-6), the team will gain the eight-seed spot in sectionals.

Here's how they scored:

Francisco Martinez, eight-yard run
Kyle King, safety
Ryan Pyatt, nine-yard run
Justin Washington, 12-yard pass from Aaron Gugel
Ryan Pyatt, 51-yard run
Ryan Pyatt, 55-yard run

In other Genesee County football Friday and Saturday:

• Elba/Byron-Bergen moved to 4-2 with a win over Oakfield-Alabama (0-6), 35-14. Dylan Bordonaro gained 169 yards 22 carries, scoring twice, and Eric Kowalik went 5-for-10, passing for 122 yards and one touchdown;
• Cal-Mum beat Le Roy 42-0;
• Alexander fell to 0-6 with a 26-10 loss to Holley (5-1);
• Pemroke (5-1) beat Notre Dame (3-3), 20-13. Caine Cole gained 168 yards and scored two touchdowns on 30 rushes. Trevor Gray made 17 tackles for Pembroke and recovered a fumble, while Wyatt Chittenden added 10 tackles and two interceptions. For the Irish, Mike Pratt ran for 107 yards on 21 carries.

Next week, Pembroke travels to Holley for a 1:30 game on Saturday afternoon that pits two of the three teams in the Geneesee Region division that have 5-1 records. Attica, also 5-1, hosts Elba/Byron-Bergen (4-2).

More pictures from Batavia's Senior Night after the jump: