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Fire fighters finish dowsing the flames late Tuesday morning of a home that was destroyed by an accidental fire. Staff photo: Justin Langston
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Justin Langston
Staff Writer
On Tuesday morning, dark smoke clouds billowed over Piedmont as a local residence burned. While most of the house was destroyed in the fire, all of the family members, as well as the pets, managed to get out without injury.
“We could see on the way out here that the house was totally involved,” police chief Jerry Koester said. “It looks like a total loss.”
The fire began early Tuesday morning at the home of Robert and Shelly Williamson. Koester said that he believed the fire began in the southern fireplace.
According to reports, Williamson said she started a fire in the fireplace before going to cook in the kitchen. While cooking, she said she smelled smoke, so she returned to the fireplace and the room was full of smoke.
At this point, she called emergency personnel to report the fire. According to reports, Williamson was still inside of her house when she called and emergency personnel advised Williamson to leave the house. At that point, however, the phone was disconnected, and the police suspect it was caused by the fire burning the wiring.
Williamson did manage to get out of the house, unharmed, along with her three dogs. Two of the dogs stayed with Williamson, but a six month old black lab was frightened by the fire and ran away. As of press time, he had not been found.
Piedmont Fire called for all available units in the area. As they began their approach, black smoke billowed up high into the air. According to Koester, reporters from Channel 4 said they could see the smoke from their offices on the other side of the Broadway extension.
Fighting the fire was somewhat difficult for the fire fighters, drawn from Okarche, Cashion and Deer Creek as well as Piedmont, thanks to the strong northern winds.
When the wind blew in, it pushed some of the fire south.
“It’s all we could do to keep it from getting bigger,” Koester said.
Once the fire was put out, the Red Cross was contacted. The Red Cross made arrangements for Williamson and her children to stay at a motel for a few days. Robert Williamson was out of town on business.
In addition to the motel, the Red Cross has also provided the family with vouchers so they can purchase food and other items to get by.
The Piedmont Service Center has also offered clothing and other items to help the Williamson’s out during this time.
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