ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Tuesday, May 28, 1996                  TAG: 9605280147
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: C1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: CHRISTOPHER RICKETT STAFF WRITER

FAMILY ESCAPES HOUSE FIRE

SEVEN CHILDREN and their parents had to flee their home this morning.

A family of nine escaped without injury from a house fire late Monday in Southwest Roanoke.

Firefighters responded to a call in the 300 block of Mountain Avenue around midnight. A blaze believed to have started in the basement of a large, two-story wood-frame home quickly spread to the attic.

Jeffrey King, who lived at the home, told firefighters he was watching television on the first floor when he noticed smoke and ran upstairs to wake up his wife and seven children, whose ages range from 2 to 12.

After the family was evacuated, firefighters needed 30 minutes to bring the fire under control. Emergency crews also carried a small dog from the building.

District Chief Pat Taylor of the Roanoke Fire Department did not speculate on the cause of the blaze or how much damage it caused, though flames and smoke were visible throughout the home.

Fire officials could not immediately confirm the home's exact address.

LENGTH: Short :   34 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:   WAYNE DEEL/Staff Jeffrey King (center) comforts one of 
          his seven children,  2-year-old Brandy King, as District Chief Pat 
          Taylor (left) talks with him after the fire about lodging for the 
          family.   color