Lamp cord cited as cause of Brackenridge house fire

A lamp cord is believed to be the cause of a fire that damaged a Brackenridge home Thursday night, Pioneer Hose fire Chief Rick Jones said.

The fire gutted the living room of the house at 1117 Orchard Way, which is an alley between Brackenridge and Third avenues near Mile Lock Lane, Jones said. There was smoke and heat damage to the rest of the two-story, wood-frame house.

Jones did not know the name of the occupant, who he said escaped unharmed along with his dog. The Red Cross provided him a place with to stay.

Jones said the county fire marshal ruled the fire accidental and electrical in origin.

According to Jones, the man had noticed smoke near a lamp.

“He grabbed the fire extinguisher he had and hit it with the fire extinguisher,” Jones said. “He thought he snuffed it out. It flamed up again, so he got out.”

Jones said firefighters from his department, along with Eureka Hose and Highland Hose in Tarentum, responded to the 10:30 p.m. call and had the fire under control in 10 to 15 minutes. The volunteers were there for about 90 minutes.

No firefighters were hurt, and Jones said they had no issues with manpower, equipment or water.

The house is a rental, owned by Preferred Property Solutions in Lower Burrell since July 2019, according to Allegheny County real estate records. A representative could not be reached Friday.

Jones said the owner had insurance on the house, and the man living there had renter’s insurance for his personal belongings.

“We were all excited when we heard that,” he said.

Whether the house is worth repairing will be an issue for the owner’s insurer to decide, Jones said.