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ALTON - A family of five, a dog and cats woke to sounds of a crackling fire and a bright glow of rolling flames at the back of a home early Friday morning in the 2000 block of Seminary in Alton.
The family members ranged from age 2 to 77, with a couple, two young children and one of couple’s father in the home at the time the fire broke out.
Alton Fire Chief Bernie Sebold said the family was very fortunate to get out of the house safely being that it was in the middle of the night. The alarm came through to the fire department at 3:16 a.m., Sebold and Deputy Fire Chief Mark Harris also responded along with a team lead by Battalion Chief Brad Sweetman. The East Alton Fire Department also responded.
Sebold said not only did the couple have to worry about getting their two younger children out of the house, but also the elderly father.
“They were all were asleep and woke up to a crackling sound,” Sebold said. “The fire spread quickly and it was not discovered yet on the smoke detectors. They probably woke up and were in a fog; I give them credit for getting out so quickly.”
One of the fire victims reported seeing a bright glow of fire rolling up the back of the home and knew they had to evacuate the family and pets immediately.
When firemen arrived, there were many visible flames. Sebold said Sweetman did an excellent job with the initial sizeup of the fire and how he directed the attack.
“The guys showed their professionalism and training and were very efficient,” Sebold said. “All the occupants were out of the house by the time the fire department arrived, which allowed the firemen to focus solely on fire attack. What we believe happened is that the fire started in the rear on the exterior of the house on the deck.
"The home owners had made a winter pet shelter for their cats outside and there was some sort of electrical failure, which caused the fire on the deck to spread, then it went to the siding of the house, and got in a soffit and into an attic space between the kitchen and ceiling.”
From there, the chief said the fire traveled to the underside of the roof on the first floor and through a void to the second floor wall and got to the second-floor ceiling.
“The firefighters made a very quick and effective knockdown,” Sebold said. “They had to remove a lot of the ceiling in the kitchen on the first floor and second floor to get the fire extinguished. The house is well intact and very repairable. Hopefully the family will not be out for a very extended time.”
There was a cleaning company at the home working on the house as early as 9 o’clock today, so there is already an attempt to make it livable again.
As customary in this type of situation where a family is displaced, the Alton Fire Department contacted the American Red Cross and made them aware of the situation.
Two of the cats and a dog were all accounted for outside in the early morning fire. It was speculated one of the cats had run off and hopefully would return because they were in essence “outdoor cats,” Sebold said.
Sebold said this fire in the early morning shows how important it is to have working smoke detectors and be aware of what to do in this type of situation.
“Seconds count when something like this happens, especially at 3 in the morning,” he said.
The family, their home and all the pets were saved due to a quick-thinking battalion chief, the rapid team response and efficient training of the Alton Fire Department.
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