News

City probe finds furnace wiring the cause of Hornell fire

Posted December 13, 2007 10:00 pm

Jen Carpenter

A dangerously-wired furnace and outdated smoke detectors are to blame for a fatal Front Street fire.

Hornell Fire Chief Dan Smith Thursday reported fire department investigators had pinpointed the cause of the Nov. 25 fire at 85 Front St., which killed two people and injured four others.

Firefighter Frank Brzozowski, who is leading the fire investigation, said the morning following the fire the department was able to narrow down the start of the fire to the area above the furnace, which was located in the basement of the home.

"That was where the point of the fire originated from," he said.

The fire killed 22-year-old Tricia M. Cushman, and her six-month-old son, Landon Carl Walsh.

Four others were injured in the blaze, one seriously. Paul E. Cushman Sr., 49, was hospitalized with head and stomach injuries after jumping out a second-story window head first. Representatives from Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester this morning said Cushman had been released, and were unsure if he was transferred to another hospital or returned home.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

Other residents of 85 Front St. - Beth Campbell, no age given; Michael Butler Jr., 26; and Sandra Campbell, 18 - were treated for smoke inhalation and released. Campbell is the owner of the home.

Brzozowski said there is a small sealed metal box above the furnace that normally contains a disconnect switch and a fuse. The purpose of the fuse - a safety feature - is to shut off the furnace if it overloads. He said somewhere along the line, the fuse was taken out of the box, and the wiring was connected directly to the disconnect switch.

"From all appearances from the outside it looks normal," Smith added.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

Brzozowski said the wiring was arcing, and could have been heating up over a long period of time. He said once the fire broke out above the furnace, it came through a heating vent and ignited clothing piles and other flammable items, spreading the fire quickly.

Smith said there was a gas line close to the furnace, but firefighters and a gas company investigator ruled that out as a possible cause of the fire.

Smith said firefighters are not blaming the homeowner for bypassing the furnace's safety feature, and said there's a possibility the furnace could have been installed that way. Smith was not sure how old the age of the furnace or who manufactured it.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

Brzozowski said the natural aging of timber in some older homes helps speed up the process of wood drying out, making it easier to catch fire. Brzozowski said the box containing the fuse and disconnect switch was mounted to a floor joist.

"It just makes it like a tinder box," he said. "We come across this all the time."

Smith said the department traced the history of repairs to the furnace, and found no reports of a faulty safety device or a missing fuse. According to the city's codes office, the property did not have to be inspected because it was owner occupied.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

Smith noted the safety device on furnaces and other appliances are there for a reason. He said many times, people also will replace a lower fuse with a higher fuse, which causes the wiring to heat up and pose a fire threat.

Firefighters initially reported there were no batteries in the smoke detectors in the home. Now it's believed outdated smoke detectors may have been the problem.

Smith said he has spoken with Betty Monaghan, Beth Campbell's mother, and believes there were batteries in the home's smoke detectors. Smith said nobody, including residents, neighbors or firefighters remembers hearing any smoke detectors.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

"No one that was inside the structure remembers hearing them," he said. "When a house has working smoke detectors, usually you don't have that much fire involvement."

Smith said firefighters were able to locate one smoke detector at the top of the stairs in the home. He said it's the department's job to find out why the detector didn't go off.

"The two things don't jibe," he said. "We want to get to the bottom of it."

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

Smith said the detector was made by Honeywell, and after doing some research and speaking with Honeywell representatives, he found out Honeywell stopped manufacturing residential smoke detectors about 20 years ago. Honeywell does still make commercial smoke detectors.

In 1983, Honeywell issued a recall affecting over 770,000 of its smoke detectors. Smith said the department was unable to tell if the smoke detector found in the home was one that had been recalled.

Smith said most smoke detector manufacturers recommend detectors be replaced after eight to 10 years. He said an outdated smoke detector would still make noise when the button is pushed, but wouldn't alert to smoke.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

"That smoke detector was giving people a false sense of security," he added.

Smith said if anyone has a smoke detector they can't verify is less than 10 years old, they should automatically replace it.

"It's something that needs to be done," he said.

<tbody>

<tr>

</tr>

<tr>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

The city recently purchased 200 smoke detectors to give to community homeowners. Anyone who receives a detector must sign a release of liability form, and will receive a set of instructions and possible locations to place the detectors. Anyone interested in receiving a smoke detector can call the Hornell Fire Department at (607) 324-2100 or City Hall at (607) 324-7421.

Smith said he is not blaming anyone, but hopes the department's message will help prevent future fires. Brzozowski said it is an important job of the department to figure out why fires happen.

"It's a very methodical process," he added.

Article Categories
News