Pocomoke house fire-

 

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     Pocomoke Volunteer Fire Company picture.

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Pocomoke house fire under investigation - 47abc (wmdt.com)

Monday Night Fire Continues The Count - 53

The abandoned structure fire on the corner of the Saxis Road and Wessells Farm Road that occurred Monday, February 25, 2013 has been classified by investigators as arson.

This was the third fire in three days. Fire fighters and other emergency personel, along with police and investigators, were busy on Drummondtown Road in Wachapreague on Saturday evening.

Sunday evening another fire in an abandonded structure kept units busy also. These two fires have also been classified as arson.

Monday night's fire is the second fire set in an abandoned building in eight days to be set in the Saxis Road area.  On February 17, 2013 fire was set to an abandoned dwelling in the 29000 block of the same road.

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No injuries  within the fire and emergency departements have been reported and it must be said that these brave men and women are doing a remarkable job in protecting properties and lives when they are called on at a moments notice.  They are volunteers that Accomack County residents can be proud of. 

These have been trying times for the residents of Accomack County and I don't suppose any people know that better than the families of the fire/emt/emergency personel, Accomack County Sheriff's Office, the Virginia State Police and all the investigators who have been anxiously seeking an answer to the fires that have plaqued Accomack County since November 12, 2012.

Monday nights fire brings the total of arson to 53.

A reward of up to $25,000 is being offered to anyone who can provide information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for this or any other of the more than 50 arson fires reported since November 13, 2012.

The number to call,text or email is 757-655-1437.

Abandoned Structure Fire #22

At approximately 11pm Wednesday night another abandoned structure fire was reported to the 911 Center. Melfa,Onley, Wachapreague and Melfa were dispatched to the fire at 29278 Racetrack Road near Melfa.

Firefighters arrived to find the structure fully involved and situated close to the woods. Brush trucks were called in to assist.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control in approximately 10 minutes.

The Virginia State Police and the Accomack County Sheriff's Department are investigating.

This brings the number of abandoned structure fires in Accomack County since November 12 to 22. The Virginia State Police and the Accomack County Sheriff's Department continue their investigation of the string of alleged arsons.

A $5000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the party responsible for setting the fires.

To report a tip, call: 1-800-582-8350 or (757) 424-6820; or call the Accomack County Sheriff's Office at (757) 787-1131.

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BURN BAN STILL IN EFFECT

Effective immediately (April 16, 2012), ALL outdoor burning is banned for an indefinite period of time in Worcester County. Worcester County Fire Marshal Jeff McMahon issued the burn ban today. (Monday)

The ban applies to all outdoor ignition sources with the following exceptions: Proper use of gas and charcoal grills, campfires at the County’s commercial, State and Federal campgrounds, permitted official Ocean City bonfires, private property recreational campfires which are limited to a fire area of 2 feet with a height of 3 feet, public fireworks displays and volunteer fire company training exercises.
http://wcfmo.org/images/stories/PR/2012/2012burnban.pdf

More On The Sprinkler System Issue

This article should shed a little more light on the issue with fire sprinkler systems being installed in new family dwellings. No one will argue the fact that perhaps sprinklers do save lives. The issue here is the fact that there is one more law from the government telling us how to live our lives in something that WE are paying for, not to mention the added expense initially, then the costs, possibly, to have water hooked to it. What does it cost to have city water run to this? What would the monthly cost be?

Let's face it. People don't want to burn to death in the middle of the night in their homes. They don't want to see their belongings destroyed by fire either. More importantly, what they don't want is for the government of any size to come into their homes and tell them there is one more thing they must do........because it's law. That's just wrong!

Maryland has adopted the National Building Code, effective Jan. 1, as the standard for all new residential construction in the state. One of its provisions is a mandate that fire sprinkler systems be installed in all new one- and two-family dwellings. Municipalities may exempt themselves from the requirement --but only if they do so by mid-December. Berlin is considering exempting itself; Salisbury has adopted the requirement.

While it's easy to see how homeowners might be skeptical, the available literature and video demonstrations on the Internet are convincing. In staged demonstrations, a fire can destroyed a room in less than 2 minutes; in an identical room with a sprinkler installed, the fire is extinguished in about 15 seconds.

There is no convincing argument for any builder or homeowner to choose not to install sprinklers.

Sprinklers cost between $1 and $1.50 per square foot of living space; therefore, for a modest 1,200-square-foot starter house, the additional cost would be about $1,200-$1,800 --equivalent to modest upgrades in flooring, kitchen cabinets or other fixtures in a new home. The additional one-time cost is offset to some degree by a 1 to 2 percent annual discount on homeowner's insurance.

Plumbing, which is required for home sprinkler systems, is a self-contained system that does not experience the wear and tear of ordinary plumbing; it is installed inside the walls where it is not exposed to freezing temperatures. Because sprinkler heads are activated independently, only the amount of water necessary to contain the fire until help arrives is dispatched, limiting water damage. And because the sprinkler heads are heat-activated, there is little chance for accidental triggering of the devices.

Smoke alarms increase the chances of surviving a house fire by nearly 50 percent; sprinklers increase it to about 97 percent.

In the end, the argument comes down to whether government should tell people what to do. When government steps in to protect people instead of giving them choices, it should because of the potential for that decision to harm others -- as this one could in apartments, hotels or duplexes.

Multi-family structures should be required to have sprinkler systems; however, builders or owners of single-family dwellings should retain the right to make the decision.

www.delmarvanow.com

Chincoteague Restaurant Destroyed By Fire

CHINCOTEAGUE — An Asian-themed restaurant on Chincoteague burned Monday evening.

“It’s a total loss. We just thank God no one was hurt,” said Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company public relations officer Denise Bowden.

The Great Wall II restaurant, located at 6341 Maddox Blvd., was fully involved when firefighters arrived on the scene minutes after a 911 call came in around 7:30 p.m., with flames were showing out of the roof and front windows of the one-story brick-facade wooden structure, Bowden said.

No one was at the restaurant at the time the fire broke out because it is closed on Mondays. No one was injured in the blaze.

Chincoteague Assistant Chief Harry Stanley Thornton was the first to arrive on the scene within two to three minutes of the fire being reported and was the officer in charge.

A nail salon next door to the restaurant also was left with damage to its exterior as a result of the fire, but Bowden credited the quick action of firefighters with preventing the blaze’s spreading to other nearby businesses.

“All the men and women did a fantastic job,” she said.

Firefighters extinguished the flames in less than an hour but remained on the scene for two to three hours, Bowden said.

An investigator from the Virginia State Police also was at the scene of the fire, the cause of which is not known as yet.

Units and personnel from Chincoteague, Greenbackville, Atlantic, New Church, Wallops and Saxis responded to the fire.

Kruno Filipic of Chincoteague owned the building, which was rented to the restaurant business.

www.delmarvanow.com