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Y Walk Wednesday? … because of what you can learn

Public drunkenness citation to be filed

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Flames had just ravaged his family&#8217;s Hazle Street bakery on Sunday afternoon, but Louis Nardone nevertheless found cause to be grateful.</p><p>&#8220;All I can say is, it is by the grace of God that no one was hurt,&#8221; Nardone said. &#8220;We&#8217;ll deal with the rest.&#8221;</p><p>And it appeared there will be plenty for him to deal with, after the three-alarm blaze sent flames shooting from the roof of Nardone Brothers Baking Co., which is known for its pizza.</p><p>There was no word later Sunday on a cause, Nardone and Wilkes-Barre Assistant Fire Chief John Ostrum said.</p><p>The fire broke out at about 2:20 p.m., and at its height drew 17 firefighters, three paramedics, four engine trucks, a ladder truck and two medic units.</p><p>Hanover Township resident Troy McKinney said he called 911 after passing by the bakery and seeing flames in the window. Emergency crews were on scene about five minutes later, McKinney said.</p><p>Neighbors and other onlookers converged on the scene, including Warren Lewis of Nanticoke.</p><p>&#8220;I was on 81 and I could see flames shooting from the building,&#8221; Lewis said. &#8220;We got here just as the engines were arriving.&#8221;</p><p>Addressing concerns raised by onlookers about a slight delay in getting water to the fire, Ostrum said a witness adamantly claimed he saw people in the building, and that immediately became crews&#8217; first priority.</p><p>&#8220;Our firefighters found no one inside the buildings and the owner confirmed that there was no one inside,&#8221; said Ostrum. &#8220;At that point, we diverted all our manpower to aggressively fighting the fire from both from inside and on top of the building, and were able to contain it to one area.&#8221;</p><p>Ostrum described the blaze as &#8220;originally looking worse than it turned out to be,&#8221; with heavy damage confined to one area. The flames were under control by 3:15 p.m.</p><p>Founded in 1942, according to its website, Nardone Brothers&#8217; products are served in schools around the country. The firm also has a location on New Commerce Boulevard in Hanover Township.</p><p>Nardone said he was hoping to get nearly 60 employees at the site back to work as soon as possible.</p><p>&#8220;The (health) inspector was here and will be coming back tomorrow,&#8221; he said Sunday evening. &#8220;Our insurance guy will be out tomorrow too. We&#8217;ll go from there.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Firefighters battle a smoky blaze at Nardone Bros. pizza bakery on Hazle Street in Wilkes-Barre on Sunday afternoon. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL081015NardoneFire_11.jpg</photo0><caption0>Firefighters battle a smoky blaze at Nardone Bros. pizza bakery on Hazle Street in Wilkes-Barre on Sunday afternoon. </caption0><photoCredit0>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL081015NardoneFire_21.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Firefighters battle a smoky blaze at Nardone Bros. pizza bakery on Hazle Street in Wilkes-Barre on Sunday afternoon. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL081015NardoneFire_21.jpg</photo1><caption1>Firefighters battle a smoky blaze at Nardone Bros. pizza bakery on Hazle Street in Wilkes-Barre on Sunday afternoon. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>

Three-alarm fire damages Nardone Brothers bakery in Wilkes-Barre