First, this Pennsylvania bride's wedding venue caught fire... then her dress burned
BETHLEHEM, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- A Bethlehem, Pennsylvania bride-to-be was left scrambling just days before her wedding after her dress was destroyed in a three-alarm fire.
Officials report the fire broke out on the 100 block of Independence Court around 3:10 p.m. Monday. Alex Herman, who was set to marry her fiancé Ryan, said she received a phone call that her parents' home was consumed by the flames.
"Honestly I'm still kind of numb," said Herman. "Just everything you think could go wrong is going wrong."
Herman said her wedding dress, the dresses for her sister and mother, her father's suit, and their shoes and accessories were inside.
The coronavirus has made Herman's wedding incredibly difficult. After booking vendors, they had to reschedule their wedding that was initially planned for June 2020.
Then their venue, which was booked at The Normandy Farm Hotel in Blue Bell, battled its own fire in March 2021.
Family members are still in shock after this latest incident.
"It's our life, we've been here for 15 years, it's our home," cried Lynn Herman, homeowner and mother of the bride-to-be.
Nancy Run Fire Chief Nolan Rampulla said it took firefighters about three hours to put out the fire. Two of the units will be demolished. No one was injured and police rescued two dogs.
"The crews did an awesome job based on the advanced nature of that fire, maintaining the damage to the two units of origin and minor damage to everything else," said Rampulla.
Herman said she's amazed at all the people who have jumped in to help.
"We've gotten so much support from bridal shops and even just strangers to donate to us and it's amazing," said Herman. "I actually was lucky enough to have a shop that is overnighting a dress to me. It's not the same one, but I didn't even want the same one anymore because it's just bad memories."
Rampulla said officials are still investigating the cause of the fire and cannot rule out if it was criminal in nature.
