A Harmony man was injured Monday night in a fire sparked by a kerosene heater explosion.
Joseph Virgil Bowlin Jr. was transported to Iredell Memorial Hospital for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation, said Iredell County Deputy Fire Marshal Thomas Moore.
Bowlin was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit overnight, but was expected to be released from the hospital on Wednesday, Moore said.
Moore said firefighters from Harmony, Union Grove and County Line responded to 272 E. Memorial Highway at about 10:19 p.m. Monday, and found the 1971 model mobile home totally engulfed when the first unit arrived.
The firefighters were able to bring the blaze under control in about 18 minutes.
Moore said the fire began in the living room after the kerosene heater exploded. The house was a total loss and no contents could be salvaged.
Moore estimated damages at $11,000.
The American Red Cross responded to assist Bowlin.
In a second blaze, Wednesday afternoon at a home on Hill Street, a mother and her four children were displaced.
Statesville Fire Marshal Mike Billings said a city power crew spotted smoke coming from the house and notified the fire department.
He said the crew was working on power lines in the area and had turned the power off to the entire neighborhood earlier in the afternoon and restored power just minutes before spotting the smoke.
Billings said the renter, Felicia Barber, left the home to pick up her youngest two children at school, and apparently left something on the stove. When the power was restored, the burner heated up and sparked the fire, he said.
No one was at home when the fire broke out, Billings said.
He said the kitchen is destroyed and the remainder of the house suffered heat and smoke damage. Some items will be salvageable.
Billings said Barber did not have renter’s insurance, not an uncommon occurrence for renters.
“I think a lot of people think they’re stuff is covered by the homeowner’s policy but it’s not,” he said.
The American Red Cross was called in to assist the family, and the SFD was able to give the family a $100 gift card, courtesy of the Statesville Professional Firefighters Association.
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