Joseph McCusker, 51, has been identified as the man who died in an Amherst apartment fire over the weekend, authorities said today.
The Snyder Fire Department was called at 2:11 a.m. Sunday to an eight-unit complex at 285 Scamridge Curve – just east of the Youngmann Highway, between Main Street and Sheridan Drive. Amherst police evacuated most of the residents, and firefighters used ladders to rescue two people and a cat from an upper apartment.
But McCusker, who has family in Geneva and the Bronx, was trapped inside the burning structure, which experienced extensive fire and water damage and a partial roof collapse, according to officials. Damage was estimated at more than $1 million.
Earlier over the weekend, Swormville firefighters were called at around 6:35 p.m. Saturday to a home in the 2000 block of Dodge Road where fire in an attached garage quickly spread to the house.
A second alarm was called, and firefighters from several companies battled the blaze for more than an hour before it was brought under control.
Officials listed the cause as careless use of combustible materials too close to a heat source. Damage was estimated at $200,000.
The Snyder Fire Department was called at 2:11 a.m. Sunday to an eight-unit complex at 285 Scamridge Curve – just east of the Youngmann Highway, between Main Street and Sheridan Drive. Amherst police evacuated most of the residents, and firefighters used ladders to rescue two people and a cat from an upper apartment.
But McCusker, who has family in Geneva and the Bronx, was trapped inside the burning structure, which experienced extensive fire and water damage and a partial roof collapse, according to officials. Damage was estimated at more than $1 million.
Earlier over the weekend, Swormville firefighters were called at around 6:35 p.m. Saturday to a home in the 2000 block of Dodge Road where fire in an attached garage quickly spread to the house.
A second alarm was called, and firefighters from several companies battled the blaze for more than an hour before it was brought under control.
Officials listed the cause as careless use of combustible materials too close to a heat source. Damage was estimated at $200,000.