Fire destroys Waynesburg home
Firefighters responded to a blaze that destroyed a 1 1/2-story wood frame home on Liberty Street in Waynesburg Tuesday evening. No injuries were reported. (Photo by Nicholas Milinovich)
Firefighters responded to a blaze that destroyed a 1 1/2-story wood frame home on Liberty Street in Waynesburg Tuesday evening. No injuries were reported. (Photo by Nicholas Milinovich)
WAYNESBURG — Firefighters responded to a blaze that destroyed a 1 1/2-story wood frame home on Liberty Street in Waynesburg Tuesday evening.
Waynesburg Borough Police Officer Tom Ankrom said the fire reportedly broke out at 25 South Liberty St. at 10:02 p.m. and firefighters from Waynesburg-Franklin Volunteer Fire company quickly responded to the scene.
Ankrom said the house’s four occupants — Michelle Sloan, Larry Roach, a 15-year-old male and a six-year-old boy — escaped from the blaze, and no injuries were reported.
Police said the occupants reported that they heard a “bang” coming from the basement just before the fire started and then fled from the residence.
The fire is believed to have started in the basement, near one of the juvenile’s bedrooms, police said.
The fire company was assisted in battling the blaze by the Jefferson Volunteer Fire Co., Ankrom said. The blaze was extinguished shortly before 1 a.m.
Ankrom said he, Waynesburg Fire Chief Jeff Marshall and Washington state police fire marshal Shaun Jones visited the scene Wednesday afternoon, and an investigation determined that the cause of the fire was “an aging electrical system in the house that was poorly maintained.”
The building is owned by Don Roberts of Waynesburg.
The occupants received assistance from the Waynesburg Salvation Army and are currently staying with relatives, Ankrom said.