EDGEWOOD, Md. — Flames shooting from the house on Albantowne Way in Edgewood lit up the night sky and threatened neighboring homes.
WATCH: Chimney faulted in Edgewood fire
“I was actually on my way home from visiting my brothers and my neighbors here saw that the flames were getting really close to the house,” said Sean Ryan, “They knew our pets were in the house. Actually, quite a few of the neighbors. My wife was in D.C. and both of our phones were just blowing off the hook.”
Investigators soon learned despite the virtual inferno, which met firefighters upon their arrival, the initial flames had been virtually impossible to detect at their origin.
“The owners were here and they described what they heard as a ‘popping’ sound,” said Master Sr. State Fire Marshal Oliver Alkire, “He didn’t really think much of it. However, when he came out, the neighbors across the street say all the same thing and it was just described as a very small fire at the top of that chimney. However, it quickly spread.”
While it is difficult to determine exactly what went wrong in this case, experts offer these tips to help prevent chimney fires.
“One of the things that we always encourage is actually use dry, seasoned firewood. That’s one of the things we want to see,” said Alkire, “Maintain maintenance of that chimney. Always, yearly, contact your chimney sweep. Get that swept out.”
Damages from the fire are estimated at 150 thousand dollars for the structure and another 50 thousand dollars for the contents.
