ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Wednesday, May 29, 1996                TAG: 9605290084
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: C-4  EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MICHAEL CROAN STAFF WRITER 

FIRE'S CAUSE STILL UNKNOWN RED CROSS PUTS FAMILY OF 9 AT HOTEL

Roanoke Fire Department investigators still don't know the cause of a Monday night fire that left a family of nine homeless.

The fire started in the basement of a home at 353 Mountain Ave. S.W., according to Assistant Fire Marshal David Deck.

"We think it started in the area of the furnace, but the furnace was not on when it started," Deck said Tuesday. "It doesn't appear to be a suspicious fire."

Jeffrey King was in his living room when he noticed smoke just before midnight. He alerted his wife and their seven children, who range in age from 2 to 12. All escaped uninjured.

The house, which the Kings rent, had four smoke detectors - two on the first floor, one upstairs and one in the basement, Deck said.

The Red Cross Disaster Services has placed the family in a motel and also is providing food and clothing.

"We provide for immediate emergency needs," said Disaster Services assistant director Tanya Williams. "The Red Cross is here to get you back on your feet to some type of normalcy."

Firefighters returned twice to the scene to extinguish rekindled flames - 10 minutes after they initially left, and again four hours later.

"We had a tough time," said Capt. Kenneth L. Watson, who responded to the initial call at 11:57 p.m. "When we got there, there were flames coming out of three or four different windows."

Deck said the fire spread inside the walls, from the basement to the attic.

Watson explained that the powdered insulation used in the house made it more difficult to put out the blaze.

"The only way to really be sure you have the fire out is to just tear all the walls out," he said. "It's real hard to put those things out once the fire gets in the walls like that."

Fire investigators estimated damage at $30,000.

Anyone interested in assisting the King family may call Red Cross Disaster Services at 985-3560. Please do not drop off donations at the office.

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