ROYALTON: Fire hits Peet Street home

By April Amadon/amadona@gnnewspaper.com

ROYALTON February 21, 2008 02:53 am

— An elderly woman is being helped by the American Red Cross after she escaped from a fire that consumed her Peet Street home Wednesday afternoon.
Sheriff’s dispatch received a 911 call about 12:30 p.m. about the fire, which reportedly started after the homeowner, 80-year-old Eleanor Cosleman, started a fire in her wood-burning stove.
The fire spread to the stove pipe, and Cosleman put it out, the report said. The pipe, however, remained hot and soon started a fire inside the chimney.
Deputy Tim Callaghan said Cosleman, the only person in the home, was able to escape the home before the flames spread.
“She went to the neighbor’s house because she did not have a phone,” Callaghan said.
Callaghan arrived on the scene minutes after the fire was reported and found billowing smoke coming from the home.
The Middleport Volunteer Fire Company responded to the scene, assisted by fire crews from Gasport, Wolcottsville and Hartland.
Middleport Fire Chief Steve Cooley said when he arrived, the smoke had spread, causing a confusing situation for emergency crews.
“When we came up, all these farms and fields on the way here were filled with smoke,” he said. “We weren’t sure if it was coming from this place, or coming from somebody else who was burning wood, or whatever.”
The chilly weather also made fighting the fire a bit difficult, Cooley said.
Firefighters broke through the home’s front windows in order to get inside and fight the fire, which quickly spread to the rest of the house.
The home, a two-story wooden structure, suffered extensive damage, the report said. An estimate of damage was not yet available, and the fire is under investigation.
The American Red Cross responded to the scene to assist the Cosleman, who was not injured.
Middleport Fireman Donnell Bennett was treated at the scene for heat exhaustion, the report said.
Contact reporter April Amadon at 439-9222, ext. 6251.

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