Parker Family of Five Homeless After Fire
By: Jonathan E. Anschutz

Parker City firefighters were dispatched to a reported house fire in the city at 10:09 hours, February 3, 2007.

The home was owned by Ron and Augustine Dunkle who were home at the time with their three children. The family escaped the blaze unharmed.

Fire arriving units reported the structure was fully involved with heavy fire showing from the second floor of the residence. Approximately 35 firefighters from Parker, Emlenton, Callensburg, Eau Claire, Bruin, and Petrolia battled the blaze. The last units cleared the scene at approximately 15:00 hours.

A small rekindle was reported during the initial investigation, but was quickly knocked down by Parker firefighters.

According to Fire Chief Rick Amsler, the home was uninsured and is a total loss. Amsler says the family reported the fire started in an upstairs bedroom. There was no electrical service to the home, which was supplied with electricity by three generators.

Extreme cold and high wind hampered firefighting efforts, which focused on protecting exposures. The closest home was reportedly thirty feet away.

The family is being assisted by the American Red Cross. Those wishing to make donations may send them to the Parker Volunteer Fire Dept., Box 141, Parker 16049. All donations should be marked "for the Dunkle family."

The PA State Police Fire Marshall is reportedly investigating.

Chimney Fire Damages Perry Twp Home
by: Jonathan E. Anschutz
March 15, 2006

Firefighters were able to contain a blaze to a chimney on 3/15/06 before it could further damage the structure.

Fire crews from Perry Twp, Parker City, Callensburg, and Emlenton were called to the scene at 15:33 in the 300 block of Railroad Ln. Two adults were home at the time but were not injured. Perry Twp Ambulance was called to the scene for medical support.

Perry Twp., fire chief Bill King attributes the cause of the fire to an excess build up of creosote in the chimney.

Units returned in service by 16:49 hours.

Driver injured in Rt. 268 Crash
Victim airlifted to hospital for treatment
From Staff Reports

Parker Twp. - Butler Co. (16 Jan) - Parker City and Bruin firefighters responded to a one-vehicle accident late Sunday night around 9:30 PM.

Upon arrival firefighters found a single vehicle accident. The vehicle had gone over an embankment and collided with a tree causing the victime to become entrapped.

Following extrication from the vehicle, the victim was transported by Petrolia Ambulance to the baseball fields in Parker where the victim was them airlifted to a hospital for treatment.

There is no word on the condition of the victim or a cause of the crash. However, rescue workers cite hazardous driving conditions at the time of the accident.

St. Petersburg Home Destroyed by Fire
By The Derrick/News Herald

A St. Petersburg home was destroyed by a fire Thursday night while the family was gone.

No one was reported injured in the 7 p.m. fire in the 100 block of Railroad Street and firefighters were still on the scene at 10:30 p.m. bringing hot spots under control.

The older, two-story home of Vern and Brenda Slaugenhoupt was a total loss, said Chris Gerwick, a firefighter for the St. Petersburg Volunteer Fire Department.

Gerwick said the fire was believed to have originated on the second floor of the wood-structure home, although he said a cause was unknown.

The Clarion County blaze required several fire departments to bring it under control.

The Callensburg, Clintonville, Eau Claire, Emlenton, Parker and Perry Township fire departments, and a rapid intervention team from the Seneca fire department, assisted the St. Petersburg department.

The assisting departments were sent home at about 9:45 p.m., said a St. Petersburg firefighter.

Parker Man Killed in Rt. 268 Accident
By: The Derrick Online
(January 10, 2005)

A Parker man was killed Friday night in a four-vehicle accident in Hovey Township, Armstrong County.

Shawn A. McCall, 39, was pronounced dead at the scene at 7 p.m. by Armstrong County Deputy Coroner Thomas King as a result of blunt force trauma to his head and chest.

McCall, who police said was unbelted, was driving north on Route 268 at a high speed when he crossed the centerline in a no passing zone at 6:20 p.m. to pass a tanker truck about six miles north of Parker City, between Foxburg and Emlenton, officials said.

McCall's sport-utility vehicle struck a southbound car head-on and ricocheted into a west side embankment and into the southbound lane, said state police in Butler.

McCall's SUV then hit the tanker truck and was forced back up the hillside where his SUV hit a tree head-on, police said.

The coroner's office said speed and unsafe passing contributed to the accident.

The driver of the southbound car McCall hit head-on, Barbara J. Ferencz, 43, Parker, was reportedly uninjured as was the driver of the tanker, Randall L. Hoblit, 49, Goliad, Texas.

A fourth vehicle, driven southbound by Robert G. Hile Jr., 43, Parker, was struck by debris. Hile was also uninjured.

McCall's obituary appeared in the January 10th Derrick.

Parker Grocery Store Heavily Damaged by Runaway Semi-Truck
(October 18, 2004)

Early damage estimates as much as $100,000. No one was injured and the store remains open for business, despite losing the main entrance. A Parker grocery store sustained tens of thousands of dollars of damages Monday morning when a tractor-trailer plowed through it about an hour before it opened, knocking down walls and spilling fuel and oil. More...