Origin of Blaze that Destroyed Villanova Garage Ruled Undetermined

The cause of a garage fire that broke in the early morning hours of Saturday at 671 Darby-Paoli Road in the Villanova section of Radnor Township has been ruled undetermined.

"When you don’t have much left it's impossible to pinpoint the cause," Fire Marshal Don Wood told Radnor Patch. The fire, which drew firefighters from Radnor, Berwyn, Paoli, Malvern and several Delaware County fire departments, destroyed a detached garage on the residential property, which was once part of the Ardrossan Estate.

There were "multiple possibilities" for a cause, Wood said, but there's "no evidence there to indicate one over the other."

The fire did not jump to the home, but there were a few cracked windows from the radiant heat, Wood said.

Water supply was a factor on the site. The nearest hydrant is about a half-mile away on Lawrence Lane, he said, and the fire was "well-involved" when firefighters arrived on the scene.

Radnor Fire Company chief Michael Maguire said pumper tankers were called in from as far away as Concordville because they knew water supply would be an issue. Firefighters also had to lay 3,000 feet of supply line, and "that takes time," Maguire said.

Radnor Fire Company's former chief Jim Kelly worked to convince people that water supply needs to be closer to the homes built on former portions of the Ardrossan Estate, but no change by Radnor Township has come of it.