By the time firefighters arrived on the scene of the Saturday morning two-alarm fire at 110 Griswold Ave., it was already well established.

“The call came in at about 10 minutes before 8,” said Fire Chief Mike DeMello. “It’s an old wooden balloon-frame house so as soon as fire gets in the walls, it’s off to the races. We were trying to play catch up.”

According to DeMello, firefighters did a great job responding and quickly laying over 1,000 feet of hose from Metacom Avenue. It was a challenging fire to fight as firefighters worked to open the walls and track the flames that traveled between floors, while flames also engulfed the contents of the house. Though the fire flared back up several times, in was brought under control by about 9:30 a.m.

DeMello credits the training and teamwork of the members of the Bristol Fire Department, as well as mutual aid provided on scene by Portsmouth, Warren, and Swansea, and station coverage by Middletown, Tiverton, Barrington, and a Navy ladder truck.

One firefighter suffered minor injuries; the homeowners were not in the building at the time of the fire, but three pet birds succumbed to the smoke and two cats remain missing. The state Fire Marshal has not yet determined the cause of the fire.

Built in the early 1880’s in a simple shingle style, 110 Griswold was once home to Admiral Gilbert Hoover, a decorated naval officer who served in both World Wars and received three Navy Crosses for his heroics at the Battle of the Coral Sea, the Battle of Cape Esperance, and the Battle of Guadalcanal.