Family’s home burned completely to ground

The Fayette community has rallied together to help a Brooks family who lost their home to a large fire early Friday morning.

Fortunately the Mike Wilson family wasn’t home when the fire broke out, but their home at 335 Malone Rd. burned all the way to the ground. That was largely due to the head start the fire got on fire crews, said Capt. Pete Nelms of the Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services.

The fire was reported to 911 just after 9 a.m. by a neighbor who said she saw flames coming through the rear of the house. Seven minutes later, when the first fire engine arrived on the scene, the house was completely engulfed in flames, with fire shooting out all four sides of the home, Nelms said.

The fire has been ruled accidental in nature but the exact cause has not yet been determined, Nelms said Tuesday afternoon.

Wilson said Friday that he wanted to thank the fire department for handling the blaze. Fire crews managed to save a workshop at the rear of the property and kept the flames from spreading beyond the immediate area of the home.

“I sure do appreciate it,” Wilson said.

One firefighter was slightly injured while working the blaze, but he was treated and released from the hospital, Nelms said.

The nearest fire hydrant was half a mile away, and fire crews had to shuttle water to the fire using three tanker trucks that carry approximately 2,000 gallons each and two “combo” trucks that carry up to 1,000 gallons each, Nelms said. The combo trucks can also be used to pump water as a normal fire engine, he added. Nelms said having a fire hydrant nearby would have made for a better utilization of personnel on the scene.

News of the fire spread quickly through the community and a number of people have come to the aid of Wilson, his wife and their four boys. Harps Crossing Baptist Church and Brooks United Methodist Church offered assistance along with staff at Brooks Elementary School where the boys went to school, a family friend said. Also, Fayette Sports pledged to outfit all the boys for the upcoming baseball season, and the Brooks Area Recreation Department took up a collection for the family Saturday during baseball tryouts.

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