PHOTOS: Firefighters battle Huntington Township fire as winter storm rages

HUNTINGTON TOWNSHIP, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — As snow falls across northeastern Pennsylvania, firefighters were called to action in Huntington Township.

At around 3:00 p.m., Huntington Valley Volunteer Fire Company and multiple other fire crews were called to the unit block of Ftorkowski Road in Huntington Township for a reported fire incident.

Battling red-hot flames in the thick of a Sunday winter storm, fire crews were challenged near Shickshinny.

Smoke, making it unbearable to see, poured from a multi-barn fire at Silver Lake Farms in Huntington Township.

Flames reduced the buildings to rubble.

"I'll just never get that image out of my face," said Angie Watkins, a neighbor.

Angie is talking about the horrifying image of the business owner showing up on her porch desperately needing help.

"My elderly neighbor came to the door and he was on fire himself. I could see the flames shooting out of the barn and my husband quickly grabbed him started taking his clothes off and threw him to the ground and rolling him, the snow to get the flames out," Angie continued.

Burned and injured, the victim was inside the barn at the time of the fire. He was later rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.

It's hard to believe the amount of deviation here. It's taken crews from several counties to put out this massive inferno that's left a decades-long livelihood burnt to the ground.

The family-run farm was known for its egg business and the barns were mainly used for storage of farm equipment such as tractors.

Four of the barns were damaged including two now considered a total loss.

Due to the extreme weather conditions, extra manpower was brought in from Monroe, Luzerne, and Columbia Counties to help fight the fire in frigid temperatures.

"Heat tents, water, and stuff for the guys to keep them warm, and then getting a lot of manpower here to keep these guys rotated out so that nobody is working too long or too hard in the elements to keep them safe," said Huntington Valley Fire Chief Dustin Thomas.

The Watkins have been family friends with the barn's owners for years.

They just hope they can all recover from this loss.

"About 20 years or so and they have been here forever. My prayers are with him and his family. This weather is atrocious so, and just bless everyone here working on this," Angie added.

"All the equipment and barns could be replaced, but you can't replace a body," Bill Watkins, a neighbor, said.

Chief Thomas says crews will be on scene until the fire is fully extinguished.

The fire marshall was called in to determine a cause and at this time, we don't know the condition of the individual that was sent to the hospital.

This is a developing story and 28/22 News will provide updates as new information is made available.