Crews battling house fire in Town of Vernon

TOWN OF VERNON (WITI) -- Fire crews in Waukesha County battled a house fire in the Town of Vernon Monday, February 4th.

The fire broke out inside a two-story structure near Town Line Road and Clear View Lane. 

The fire was contained around 4:00 p.m., but firefighters remained on the scene late into Monday evening and said this was a difficult fire to fight.

"Problems today, mainly are the personnel, having enough of them. Staffing is an issue when we have this large of a fire. We want to have a few engine companies working and have a few extra on hand for anything additional and switch out," Mukwonago Fire Deputy Chief Andy Wegner said.

Between 60 and 70 firefighters from a dozen agencies were called to help fight the fire, but before they could get there, Vernon firefighters attempted to battle the flames.

"Due to conditions in the house they had to back out and go to a defensive attack," Wegner said.

Another issue for firefighters on the scene was no fire hydrants in the rural area.

"We do have a good water source in the city of Waukesha.  We're hauling water in tankers," Wegner said.

Nobody was in the house when the fire started, however, the homeowner was working in the garage nearby.

"He was notified by a neighbor of a passerby that the house was on fire. He tried putting it out with snow. He's been transported to a local hospital for some minor injuries," Wegner said.

Crews were working Monday evening to get a backhoe in place to tear the house down because the fire is still burning inside the walls. 

There is no word on how many people lived inside the home.