Wellsville family loses home, pet

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Wellsville family loses home, pet
Story by JO ANN BOBBY-GILBERT Staff Writer in the Lisbon Morning Journal on 2/18/2010.

WELLSVILLE -Wrapped in a blanket, sitting on a kitchen chair set in the middle of her snow-covered street, Beth Daniels was comforted by neighbors Wednesday as she watched her home burn down, fearing her pet Chihuahua had not made it out of the burning structure.

The fire department was called just before noon Wednesday by a neighbor who had come out to start her car and saw flames at Daniels' 813 Washington St. home. Another neighbor said the woman tried to get into the house but the flames were too intense. Smoke from the blaze could be seen as far away as Campground Road.

Daniels and her two children were not home when the fire broke out, having stayed elsewhere Tuesday night due to concerns over an odor caused by their furnace.

Daniels told reporters she turned on the furnace Tuesday and an odor began emanating from it that caused her to get a headache.

"I was afraid my kids were going to get sick," she said, and the decision was made for her two children to stay with a relative while she stayed with a friend.

Fire Chief Bill Smith had not had a chance to speak with Daniels Wednesday night but said he had no reason to believe the fire was suspicious in nature. He was told by someone at the scene that Daniels had had some furnace problems and had hired a repairman but was not confident the problem had been resolved.

"I was coming back today," Daniels said with tears streaming down her face, while neighbors urged her to get out of the cold.

"I'm OK. I'll be OK," Daniels repeated, adding, "God does not do one thing and not have a plan. God gave us a reason to leave yesterday."

She canceled the insurance on her home when she could no longer afford it after her husband died two years ago, Daniels said. She lived there 18 or 19 years.

Her tiny dog, which normally would sit in the front window looking out, was nowhere to be seen and Daniels feared it had not survived the fire. Smith said he received no word that anyone found the dog inside nor that it had been rescued, leaving its fate uncertain Wednesday night.

Firefighters from Wellsville, Highlandtown and Liverpool Township were on the scene for more than five hours after arriving to find the entire back of the house in flames and starting to collapse.

Flames had begun to spread from the eaves of Daniels' home to the adjacent two-story house's attic, Smith reported. The owner of the home at 817 Washington was not immediately known but it was being rented, and people were seen hauling out belongings as fire lapped at the edges of the roof.

Firefighters were hampered in their efforts by not being able to battle the blaze from inside, Smith said.

With the house collapsing, Smith said firemen could not go inside, noting, "We do all our fighting on the inside, we don't just stand outside and pour water on it."

The aerial truck was used to spray water on both structures from the air, with Smith eventually forced to carefully maneuver it underneath some wiring and around a power pole to extend it to the roof of Daniels' home, where Liverpool Township Chief Mike Bahen and Wellsville firefighter Barry Podwel hit a stubborn spot underneath the roof.

At 3:45 p.m., Liverpool Township began calling for fresh firefighters to relieve those who had been battling the blaze in the snow and cold for several hours.

By 5:30, firefighters were still hitting hot spots and one wall had collapsed, taking with it the awning on a nearby mobile home. The awning was already buckled from snow piled on it, Smith said.

He was working with a local contractor last night in an effort to get the remaining walls knocked down to alleviate a safety hazard.

Daniels' home was "definitely a total loss," according to Smith who said he had not yet inspected the adjacent house to determine its damage. Firefighters were forced to bring down its ceiling to reach the fire inside the attic. It also was not insured.

In addition to neighbors and Minister Bob Rudder coming to Daniels' assistance and neighbors pitching in to help move items to safety from the other house, Smith commended the local Pizza Hut and McDonald's for providing food and beverages for firefighters.

The last major fire in town also involved two houses, and Smith commented, "I wonder why I keep getting them in pairs?"

jgilbert@mojonews.com