Lightning likely cause of house fire, residents sayNeighbors alerted occupants to flames, helped them to safety By Nita Birmingham (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Originally published 12:00 a.m., July 11, 2008
Updated 10:17 a.m., July 11, 2008 UpdateLightning strike confirmed as cause of N. Chas. fire A lightning bolt caused the fire that ruined a home in the Elms of Charleston on Thursday afternoon, the North Charleston Fire Department confirmed. Two elderly occupants escaped unhurt after the blaze ignited the house at 9135 DeLancey Circle around 3 p.m. Less than a half hour later, North Charleston firefighters responded to a separate fire, also caused by a lightning strike, Battalion Chief Eric Phillips said. Crews who responded to the North Cove Apartments at 7950 Crossroads Drive found smoke coming from an air-conditioning outside a unoccupied apartment. The insulation was starting to burn, but there were no flames. -Staff reports 
Grace Beahm A firefighter with the North Charleston Fire Department is on the scene to fight the flames shooting out of the back of Peter and Mary Rowan's home Thursday. 
Grace Beahm Larry Marino, (left), comforts his father-in-law, Bob Bailey, as they watch smoke rise out of his neighbors' home on DeLancey Circle. Heat from the flames melted the siding off the garage of Bailey's home. The roof collapsed on the home of Peter and Mary Rowan less than 10 seconds after neighbors saw smoke and alerted the couple that their house in The Elms of Charleston was on fire Thursday afternoon. North Charleston firefighters said the cause of the fire at 9135 DeLancey Circle hadn't been determined, but some neighbors and Peter Rowan suspect a lightning strike. Rain was pouring at the time of the 3 p.m. fire. "It sounded like a shotgun going off. We've had lightning storms before, but I've never seen it that intense," DeLancey Circle resident Helen Maurer said. Peter Rowan said he heard a "bam." "Evidently, it hit the ground on this end," Rowan, 81, said as he pointed to the gutted garage. "We had no idea it hit the house until somebody rang our doorbell." Neighbors Edmond and Ann Dixon had been working out at the clubhouse of The Elms of Charleston and were driving home when Ann saw a white mist in the air. "It didn't look right," she said. The white mist was followed by black smoke, and the Dixons saw fire on the roof of the Rowan house. "I hit the doorbell once and I said, 'That's not going to do any good.' I was beating on the door," said Edmond Dixon, a detective with the College of Charleston Department of Public Safety. He called 911 on his cell phone. Peter Rowan was in the living room and came to the door. Mary Rowan, 81, uses a walker because she fell and broke her hip a few months ago. "By the time I called 911, he was bringing her out," Edmond Dixon said. A couple of other men helped Rowan get his wife in the car, and they drove down the street to safety. Edmond Dixon watched as, seconds later, "everything started coming down in the middle of the house." The flames were through the roof, which had collapsed, when fire trucks arrived. The Rowan house was heavily damaged by fire, and the vinyl siding on the houses on either side was warped by heat. Reach Nita Birmingham at nbirmingham@postandcourier.com or 937-5433. |
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Comments
This article has 7 comment(s)
Posted by MilkofAmnesia on July 11, 2008 at 1:18 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I love that the fire fighter in the picture isn't wearing all of his gear that close to the fire. Did we not learn anything from our fallen brothers?
Posted by Neponset on July 11, 2008 at 6:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Slightly off topic, but there has been a lot discussion in this forum about newer home construction.
The first picture shows the melted vinyl siding and some blue stuff (which I suspect is half melted foam board). There appears to be no plywood or any of the other usual sheathing material on the damage wall. I have done repairs on walls with this type of construction and the foam board is pretty flimsy and won’t hold nails.
Posted by ColdBeer on July 11, 2008 at 7:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
It does appear that there may be no wood on the outside of the walls. That's screwed up.
Posted by Charles_Town on July 11, 2008 at 7:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I remember when our house got struck by lightning when I was a Child, what a scary event. Blew out two tv's a cordless phone, had to run new wire for 2 rooms, because it got fried. It turned on a neighbor's tv and from then on he had to unplug it to turn it off.
Posted by LadyTarHeel on July 11, 2008 at 10:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Charles_Town: I had a similar experience when I was a little girl. It fried everything from the TV and the phone to our electric stove and microwave. That was the worst storm (other than a hurricane) that I have ever seen! I'm glad that no one was injured as a result of the fire.
Posted by jifdeng3 on July 11, 2008 at 4:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Ummm, What gear is missing?
Posted by BattChiefNCFD on July 11, 2008 at 9:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
milkofamnesia:
In reference to your comment concerning "the fire fighter in the picture isn't wearing all of his gear that close to the fire". You need to look a little closer; 1 - the firefighter has all of HER gear on with the exception of the facepiece of her SCBA. She is not wearing the facepiece because she isn't in a hazardous environment. The location she is standing in is the driveway of the residence, and there is no smoke where she is. 2 - the only fire that was burning at the time this picture was taken was on the right rear side of the house. This area was still burning because this is where the power came into the residence and the meter was burning & arcing because the power was unable to be secured, and due to the volume of calls caused by the thunder storm SCE&G had a delayed response. I can verify all that is said above because just outside of the frame of this picture stands her officer & myself. Furthermore, entry into this residence was never made because the house was fully involved upon arrival of the first units, and there were severe exposure problems to both residences on either side of the burning home, so the primary responsibility of the first-in crews was to protect the exposures. The original building was attacked using multiple handlines on the exterior and by utilizing an aerial stream from the bucket of the ladder truck on-scene. I hope this helps shed some light on your lack of understanding.
Joseph A. Varella
Battalion Chief
North Charleston
Fire Department