By Vickie Moss
Anderson County Review – November 26, 2013
Submitted by Newz Group Clipping Service – December 13, 2013
State fire investigators are looking into what caused a vacant house to catch fire last week. The property, a rental house that had been empty for several months, was destroyed.
Garnett Fire Chief Pat Tate said the fire was reported by a neighbor after 10 p.m. Thursday, November 21, in the 400 block of West Ninth Ave. It was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived. Tate praised firefighters, who battled wintry conditions including snow and 20 mph north winds that blew flames 20 to 30 feet out of the house.
The house was owned by Donas Fields, Westphalia, who used the house as a rental property. The last tenants moved out in February or March, Tate said.
An investigator from the State Fire Marshal’s Office examined the gutted house Friday and was expected to return Monday to conduct interviews of people who may know something about the incident. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, and the State Fire Marshal has not yet determined whether the fire was intentionally set. However, Tate said early indications do point to a suspicious cause.
Because no one lived at the property, the only item inside the vacant house at the time of the fire was an old refrigerator.
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