UPDATE @ 3:52 p.m.:
Middletown Capt. George Blake said there was little firefighters could do when they arrived today at a house fire on Roslyn Drive.
Blake said the fire blew a hole out off one side of the roof and heavy smoke was billowing out of the other side of the roof.
That’s when he told the firefighters to get “defensive,” he said.
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The lone resident and no firefighters were injured as of 3:45 p.m., according to Blake.
The home and its contents are estimated to be a total loss, but Blake said he didn’t have any loss estimates.
The resident told firefighters she had a ventless fireplace and saw fire above the ceiling tile.
Firefighters are still investigating the cause of the fire.
The siding of a neighboring house received damage from the fire’s heat, Blake said.
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UPDATE @ 3:26 p.m.
Kelly Myers was at home when the fire started. She said she heard some crackling noise and she looked up at the ceiling tile and saw “a glow.”
Myers said she called 911 and grabbed a fire extinguisher, but at that point, there was nothing she could do to stop the fire.
She sat in a lawn chair in a neighbor’s driveway watching her house become a total loss.
“It’s a mess,” Myers said.
She said she moved into the house about three months ago and had recently completed her Christmas shopping. However, it appeared all of the gifts were lost in the fire.
Myers said she was “thankful” for getting out of the house uninjured as she held her cat, Kate, under a blanket.
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INITIAL REPORT:
Middletown firefighters are responding to a house fire in the 3100 block of Roslyn Drive.
Firefighters were dispatched just before 3 p.m. on a report of heavy fire and smoke coming out of a one-story dwelling.
The Journal-News will update you with more information as we learn it.
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