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Moving blazing couch likely spread the flames

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Middletown firefighters work at the scene of a morning fire on Milton Road Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009 in Middletown, Ohio. Four people were in the home when the fire started and one was taken by ambulance to Atrium Medical Center. The fire claimed the life of three dogs and three cats.

Staff photo by Nick Graham Middletown firefighters work at the scene of a morning fire on Milton Road Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009 in Middletown, Ohio. Four people were in the home when the fire started and one was taken by ambulance to Atrium Medical Center. The fire claimed the life of three dogs and three cats.

House fire on Milton Road made worse, they say, when residents tried to move couch outside.

By Ryan Gauthier, Staff Writer Updated 1:53 AM Friday, November 20, 2009

MIDDLETOWN — A Middletown residence sustained an estimated $100,000 in structural damage during a fire Thursday, Nov. 19, after two men attempted to move a flaming couch out of the home.

Firefighters from Middletown and Monroe were dispatched at about 8 a.m. to a structure fire at 3007 Milton Road, where they found heavy smoke and flames extending from the underground garage to the second floor of the house.

Deputy Chief Paul Lolli said the blaze likely started when a candle was knocked over onto a couch in the lower floor of the tri-level home. The occupants tried to move the flaming couch to the exterior of the residence, Lolli said, probably causing the fire to be more extensive than if they had just evacuated the house.

“Basically that’s why we encourage people to close doors to the room the fire is in, get out and call the fire department,” Lolli said. “We really have a much better chance at preventing further damage than trying to carry a highly flammable piece of furniture out of a home.”

Four residents were sleeping when the fire started, but were alerted by smoke detectors in the home. All four people inside got out of the house, but one woman was transported from the scene to Atrium Medical Center for injuries related to smoke inhalation, according to Lolli.

The two males who attempted to carry the couch had minor smoke inhalation and extensive amounts of singed hair, but reportedly declined medical attention. Three dogs and three cats in the home at the time of the fire did not survive.

Lolli said it took approximately 45 minutes for firefighters to extinguish the flames, but things could have been much worse.

“We were lucky because the first-in crew gave a great knock-down of the fire,” he said.

The damage was not limited to the garage, according to those on the scene, as nearly half of the home is located above the garage. Windows are broken throughout the home, and the siding above the garage is charred and melted.

In addition to $100,000 in structural damage, an estimated $50,000 in contents was lost in the blaze.

Staff writer Lauren Pack contributed to this report.

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