For Zelienople, a fire Saturday morning that destroyed two buildings and resulted in damage to several others has posed immediate challenges for the community, probably the most important of which is to ensure that the affected buildings don't threaten the public's safety.

Challenges aside, the setback to the community also offers an opportunity for improvements on which the buildings' owners and borough officials should seek to capitalize in the weeks and months ahead.

Of course, the most immediate challenge is to eradicate the blight stemming from the blaze. Donald Pepe, borough manager, was right that the first step in that process involved dealing with maintenance issues stemming from the fire. As part of that operation, officials will have to determine how much of what existed prior to the blaze can be saved and what will have to be removed.

The prospects for new construction also must be factored in.

Firefighters from the 10 fire departments that battled the blaze merit praise for containing the flames to the buildings in question. Had the blaze occurred 24 or 36 hours later, the firefighters could have faced a much more difficult task spawned by Sunday's windy conditions.

Those winds could have jeopardized a whole block.

What's notable in regard to Saturday's firefighting operation is that there were no injuries, despite some firefighters being trapped in one of the buildings briefly. The firefighters dealt skillfully with the uncertainties brought about by dense smoke and not knowing how far the flames might have spread prior to the blaze being noticed by a borough police officer on patrol and the firefighters' subsequent arrival.

Zelienople officials, residents and leaders of the business community are capable of addressing the challenges and opportunities that Saturday's fire has produced. Such issues sometimes are not resolved as quickly as the community would prefer, but all efforts must be put forth to minimize delays in addressing the situation that the blaze has wrought.

For Zelienople, 2008 has been a bad year on the fire front. Saturday's fire, which caused an estimated $3 million damage, was the second major blaze this year. Just two months ago, a $4 million fire raged through LKQ Pennsylvania Collision Parts on Halstead Boulevard.

Although there were no obvious flaws in the fire departments' response Saturday, no doubt the departments will critique the firefighting operation — as they should — to determine how they might have performed even better under the trying circumstances.

Meanwhile, it is to be hoped that investigators are able to positively determine the cause of the blaze, especially making a determination as to whether the fire was accidental or intentionally set.

But that investigatory process shouldn't impede the decisions and planning that the situation necessitates.

Despite the tragedy that the fire represents in terms of jobs, disruption and inconvenience, good can emerge from the burned-out remains nonetheless.

The community has the human resources to bring about that successful undertaking.