|
One home destroyed by fire, another damaged |
|
Saturday, 21 November 2009 |
By BRIAN HAWKINS
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
One house was reduced to rubble and another heavily damaged in two separate fires on Friday.
The first blaze leveled a home on Bayberry Road in the Rockhill community northeast of Starkville some time during predawn hours Friday, said County Fire Services Coordinator Kirk Rosenhan.
The woman who lived in the single-story frame house had left early Friday morning on an out-of-town trip, and a neighbor called E-911 operators after seeing smoke coming from the woman’s home, Rosenhan said.
Bell Schoolhouse volunteer firefighters arrived at the home to find little more than smoldering rubble and ash, Rosenhan said.
“The house and everything in it are a total loss,” Rosenhan said. “There is no way we can even pinpoint the cause because there’s not much left.”
The name of the woman who lived in the house was not being released Friday because fire officials were still working to make direct contact with her about the fire, Rosenhan said. It is believed that the woman had been notified, Rosenhan said.
In the second fire, the home of Quenice Jones and her four children at 2443 Harris Road was heavily damaged in an early afternoon fire that ignited after a portable propane heater ignited furniture and bedding materials placed near it in the living room.
Volunteer firefighters from the East Oktibbeha and District 5 departments arrived at the home shortly after 12:30 p.m. Friday to find the living room and part of the front porch of the single-story frame house engulfed in flame, Rosenhan said.
The blaze was under control in less than 5 minutes, he said.
Jones and two of her children quickly escaped the house after the fire ignited, Rosenhan said. The other two children were at school, he said.
“We had significant heat and smoke damage throughout the house. The fire damage was contained to the front living room,” said Rosenhan.
Jones and her family were referred to the Oktibbeha County chapter of the American Red Cross for assistance. Rosenhan reminded those using portable heaters as the weather turns cooler to ensure to follow safety regulations and keep any combustible materials away from the heater.
|
|
Last Updated ( Tuesday, 24 November 2009 )
|
