Thursday, March 28, 2024

Third house fire within 14 days

Another house in Johnson County caught fire Sunday evening, Jan. 14, making it the third house fire in a 14-day span. The others were on Jan. 1 and Jan. 6.

The Vienna Fire Department was called at 8:15 p.m. Sunday to 1050 Old Bloomfield Road near Vienna to a report of a structure fire.

When firefighters arrived they found the home of Geneive Fairless on fire. Fairless told firefighters she thought she had blown a breaker and called her son, Bill, for assistance.

When her son arrived he saw the fire and moved his mother to safety. Buncombe and Goreville Fire Departments were called for assistance.

The freezing temperatures that night made assessing the fire with tankers difficult. The uphill driveway to the house became too slick for the trucks to travel. Water was pumped up the hill to the pumper trucks.

The house received extensive fire and water damage. The fire is believed to had started in the kitchen at the breaker box. Firefighters were on the scene until 11:35 that night. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.