Oak Ridge Today

Chief: Arsonists started Paragon fire

Posted at
By 1 Comment

Paragon Fire

Oak Ridge firefighters battle a blaze allegedly started by arsonists on Saturday afternoon at the former Paragon Athletic Club on Emory Valley Road. (Photos by Tom Scott)

Arsonists started a Saturday afternoon fire at the former Paragon Athletic Club in Oak Ridge, Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said.

The fire started in a bathroom area in the rear of the building on Emory Valley Road about 5 p.m. Saturday, and it warped steel beams in the ceiling.

Firefighters at Paragon Fire

Firefighters near the front door of Paragon Athletic Club in Oak Ridge during a Saturday afternoon blaze.

Witnesses reported seeing “some kids hanging out there just before the fire,” Kerley said.

“It was an arson fire,” he said.

A fiberglass spa tub had caught on fire and filled the empty, unused building with thick, black smoke. Kerley said it took firefighters eight to 10 minutes to find the fire inside the Paragon and another five to 10 minutes to put it out.

[Read more…]

Chief: Don’t fight your own fires

Posted at
By 2 Comments

Electrical Fire

A photo submitted by Oak Ridge Fire Department shows an April fire on East Drive possibly caused by an electrical problem.

So far this year, two Oak Ridge homes have been destroyed by fires after residents tried to fight the flames themselves and calls to 911 were delayed by five minutes or more, Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said in an e-mail to the media Monday.

Now, Kerley is urging residents to call 911 immediately if they see smoke or fire. “We’re trying to notify the public to please, please call us,” he said.

[Read more…]

Fire destroys east Oak Ridge home

Posted at
By 5 Comments

Fire destroys a home in east Oak Ridge on Friday

Firefighters battle a Friday evening blaze in east Oak Ridge that destroyed a home and left a mother and her two teenage sons with minor injuries.

A mother and her two teenage sons suffered minor injuries and their home was destroyed in a Friday evening fire in east Oak Ridge that was possibly caused by an electrical problem.

Vanessa Todd, 42, and her two sons, Takoda Todd, 14, and Tyler Todd, 13, tried to battle the blaze with a garden hose and rescue their two cats and one dog, but the flames were too powerful.

Two members of the Todd family at an East Drive fire

Vanessa Todd and her son Tyler are pictured above with Oak Ridge Fire Department firefighter Mark White. Not pictured is Todd's other son, Takoda.

“The fire just burned my head,” Vanessa Todd said as she watched firefighters extinguish the flames at 413 East Drive. “It was so hot. I just turned around and ran back out.”

The soot-covered family was able to escape the fire, which started just before 5 p.m. Friday, although their hair was singed and they suffered from smoke inhalation. They were able to rescue their dog Kibo and one of the cats, Syrvio. The other cat, Buddy, is still missing.

[Read more…]