By By James Crawford
News Editor
The Atmore Fire Department hasn't had much time to relax so far in the New Year. During the past two days alone, the department has responded to four house fires. "We've been busy the last two days and last night," Atmore Fire Chief Gerry McGhee said.
The rash of fires began just before 9 a.m. on Monday, when the department responded to a house fire at 1104 Fridge Drive. The house suffered a small amount of damage and the fire most probably started in the chimney, according to the Chief.
On Monday afternoon, the action continued with a house fire at 503 East Pine that resulted in only moderate damage to the house and contents. Indications are that the fire was possibly started in the laundry room.
The department's workload didn't slack off on Tuesday. The department began the day in the wee hours of the morning responding to a fire at 1:24 a.m. at 201 Robertson Drive that was possibly started by a space heater. The home suffered moderate damage to the dwelling and to the furnishings inside.
Later on Tuesday morning, at 9:35 a.m., the department responded to its fourth house fire in two days at 193 State Lane. The fire was apparently caused by grease from a frying pan igniting the cabinets directly above the stove. Ten firefighters responded to the call and the home suffered only a small amount of damage, mostly confined to the area near the kitchen.
Chief McGhee cautions residents dealing with the harsh cold in recent days to "be safe and make sure you don't have drapes or anything else near space heaters or fireplaces. Clean out chimneys and have heaters checked out."