Posted on 08/16/2002 12:25:12 PM PDT by Cagey
EASTAMPTON - Yesterday's blazing sun is being blamed for a fire that damaged a Northumberland Drive residence, a fire official said.
Eastampton Fire Marshal George Myers said the fire began about 3:50 p.m. in a stack of firewood piled next to the home and the cause was weather related.
"While there's still more investigation needed, it appears the tree sap in the wood pile crystallized, which magnified the sun's rays and started the fire," Myers said. "That's why we tell people not to stack firewood along the side of their homes."
Yesterday's high temperature reached 96 degrees under mostly clear skies at the National Weather Service's office in Westampton.
After smoldering, the blaze flared up and spread to the back and side of the two-story home at the corner of Northumberland Drive and Essex Court.
Resident Alisha Davison said she was unaware of the blaze even as flames crept up the exterior wall.
"I just got home and was in the bathroom changing clothes when a neighbor came inside the house and yelled that the house was on fire," Davison said. "I didn't know what to think. I just got out of the house."
The neighbor, a reluctant hero who declined to be identified, downplayed his role in alerting his neighbor, but fire officials and Davison praised him and efforts by other neighbors.
"My neighbors did a great job of letting me know what was going on and calling 911," said Davison who lives at the house with her parents.
Township firefighters contained the fire to a storage area. Myers said the fire soon would have spread to the attic and engulfed the home if not for the quick work of township firefighters and neighbors.
Instead, the home sustained fire damage to the exterior wall and a portion of the roof. A bedroom and the basement sustained minor smoke and water damage, Myers said, adding that the residents should be able to stay in the home pending results of a wiring inspection.
Myers said it wasn't the first time he's heard of sun sparking a woodpile fire.
"It's like when sun reflects off of broken bottles and starts a fire," he said. "It's the same principle."
An excessive-heat warning continues in the area through Saturday with heat indices reaching triple digits, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Jim Poirier.
"It looks like a cold front is going to pass through the area Sunday night, so we should have some relief by next week," Poirier said
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