BALTIMORE — A ball of fire formed mid-block as flames shot out of the second story of the rowhome on West 37th Street and leapt on to Henry Johnson’s roof.
“I have a roommate and he was yelling, ‘Fire! Fire!’ up the steps so I came down; got out outside,” recalled Johnson.
“Were you worried your house was gone? I mean…”
“Oh yes, I had no idea how bad it was going to get and the way this house was ablaze---huge flames coming out the back. I was worried about it.”
Fire in Hampden damages three rowhomes; Victim says insufficient extension cord to blame
The fire spread to three rowhomes in all, as neighbors went door-to-door alerting people to get out.
While all of the victims and their pets were able to make it out safely, there were two firefighters who sustained minor injuries during the fire and some residents here were left questions surrounding this fire hydrant.
The fire department says it later tagged it as out of service, but responding units always tie into two hydrants so it didn’t hinder their efforts.
“They contained it,” said Bob Atkinson who lives in the same block, “They really contained the fire I would say maybe within the first 20 minutes. It was good. It was really good.”
Still, in a neighborhood where fire has been no stranger in recent months, residents are sending a clear message.
“They may want to fix that especially since there’s been like five fires within a six-block radius, you know,” said another neighbor, Jim Freaney, “We had the ones on Union like a little over a year ago. You know you had the Castle down here caught fire so.”
While an investigation continues into what caused the fire, johnson says his neighbor has identified a likely source.
“She had an air conditioner upstairs with an extension cord plugged in and it was just a little, lightweight, household cord like you would use to plug in a lamp or a radio,” explained Johnson, “That overheated, melted and started the fire.”
