THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, January 22, 1997 TAG: 9701220388
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY JENNIFER McMENAMIN, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: NAGS HEAD LENGTH: 89 lines
Jim Basnight was refilling a kerosene heater early Tuesday morning in the back room of his appliance store when ``something happened'' that sparked a fire and gutted the building.
``We're not too sure about it, but there was some type of ignition around the heater,'' Nags Head Fire Chief Timothy Morrison said of the blaze in Basnight Appliances at Milepost 13 on the Bypass Highway.
This fire was the third in two days on the Outer Banks. A predawn blaze Tuesday morning caused severe damage to a Kill Devil Hills home, and a fire at Pirate's Cove shortly after midnight Monday destroyed two privately owned boats.
``It's probably a coincidence,'' Morrison said. ``When we have colder weather there are more sources of ignition - fireplaces and heaters - so there are more ways for accidents.
``The houses are closed up, people are using heat sources and that's when we have problems.''
Basnight, the only person in the building at the time, told investigators that he believes he either ``jumped back, slipped or fell and blacked out for a period of time'' after the fire started.
When he regained consciousness, Basnight ran next door to the BP station, called 911 and returned to his store, Morrison said. ``He tried to extinguish the flames with a garden hose, which was pretty futile at that point because the whole place was filled with smoke.''
Firefighters from the Nags Head,Kill Devil Hills, Collington, Kitty Hawk and Roanoke Island fire departments responded to the 6:44 a.m. call. It took them about 40 minutes to douse the blaze, which Morrison estimated had been burning for 15 to 20 minutes when firefighters arrived.
Firefighters used a gasoline-powered saw to cut through the metal exterior of the shop. The fire warped and blackened sections of the building's corrugated surface.
Charred refrigerators, washers, dryers, dishwashers and microwaves and sopping wet catalogs littered the back yard of the store Tuesday afternoon. The red plastic letters from the store's name melted and dropped in scattered clumps.
Fire officials closed the bypass for more than four hours, routing motorists to the beach road while the area was cleared.
Nags Head firefighter Chip Holcomb, who investigated the blaze, said the cause is under investigation.
Dare County EMS transported Basnight to a medical center, where he was treated for smoke inhalation and a head injury he sustained when he fell. Basnight is not related to Marc Basnight, president pro tem of the state Senate and co-owner of Basnight Construction.
The fire in Kill Devil Hills caused extensive damage to a vacant home on Clamshell Drive. No one was hurt.
Kill Devil Hills Fire Chief Doug Penland said units from his department and the Colington Fire Department responded at 4:30 a.m. and battled the blaze for more than an hour.
The fire apparently started on a lower floor and spread to the attic of the wood frame home, Penland said.
The fire is believed to have started in a storage/bedroom area on the ground floor.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
The cause of the fire that destroyed two large sport fishing boats and damaged a third was undetermined Tuesday night. The boats destroyed were the Foxy Lady, owned by John Dannenhoffer of Virginia Beach, and the Sea Jenks, owned by Clark Jenkins of Tarboro. The Excaliber was burned on one side. It was owned by George Clopper of Waynesboro, Pa.
The boats were taken Tuesday to a boatyard in Wanchese. MEMO: Staff writer Paul South contributed to this report. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
Firefighters take about 40 minutes to douse blaze
DREW C. WILSON
The Virginian-Pilot
Kill Devil Hills Fire Chief Craig Clark, at right in top photo,
completes a long shift after Tuesday's fire at the Basnight
Appliance store was brought under control. At right, firefighters
extinguish flames at the Basnight store.
WINTER SAFETY TIPS
Don't refuel kerosene heaters in a building. ``Always take the
heater outside to refuel, ignite it outside and then bring it back
in to the area to be heated,'' Nags Head Fire Chief Timothy Morrison
said.
Store ashes from the fireplace in a metal container away from any
buildings. Do not keep them in plastic or paper bags outside your
house.
Keep a window cracked during the winter so heating units will not
eat up all the oxygen in a room and cause asphyxiation.
KEYWORDS: FIRE