Photo provided Firefighters continue to hit hot spots with water on one of the homes that caught fire in Bellaire on Sunday.

BELLAIRE — Village officials are working to address problems with nonfunctioning fire hydrants after a Sunday morning fire destroyed one home and damaged two others on First Street in West Bellaire.

When firefighters arrived, there was heavy fire coming from the basement and second story of one house. Their efforts were hampered when multiple fire hydrants in the neighborhood failed to operate.

Firefighters attempted to use three hydrants but were unable to get them open.

The Bellaire Volunteer Fire Department went about 20 minutes without water, prompting officials to call in the Belmont County Tanker Task Force.

Fire Chief Tim Bell said the first house was destroyed, the second sustained major damage and a third home suffered damage to its siding but no smoke damage.

No injuries were reported.

Bell said firefighters tried to use three hydrants, but none worked, and he attributed the problem to a lack of maintenance.

Mayor Robert Dodrill said he, Bell and a representative of the village water department will meet as soon as possible to determine a solution.

“My heart goes out to the people that lost our homes, because there were two of them, and then one house caught on fire close to it, but it didn’t burn down. They got it out,” Dodrill said. “My heart goes out to them and I’m trying my best to make things right.”

He said the group plans to develop and implement a strategy to ensure the village does not face a similar situation again.

Dodrill said a waterline break Monday prevented him from providing a specific timeline, but resolving the issues remains a priority.

“Don’t get me wrong, we’re getting this done as soon as possible. But right at this moment I’m working to try to get the water moving again,” Dodrill said. “We’ve also been in the process of training for knowing how to run the hydrants but it just hasn’t been implemented yet.”

He also thanked the fire department and tanker task force for their response.

“My heart goes out to the homeowners and I want to thank the first responders, the fire department, the police department and the tanker task force for all that they did,” Dodrill said.