Wood stove may be to blame for Orange fire

ORANGE, Conn. (WTNH) -- With temperatures expected to dip into the single digits in some areas this week, staying warm will be a major priority. In Orange, investigators say an outdoor wood stove may be to blame for an overnight house fire.

Firefighters made quick work, knocking down the flames at a home on Hawthorne Lane overnight.

By daybreak, the damage was clear, the outside of a chimney charred, windows boarded up and green plastic covering the front and side of the house.

However, the family who lived there, two adults and three children all made it out, and neighbors are ready to help them in any way possible.

"There will be such an outpouring here that it will just be incredible as far as the community coming together to help," said neighbor Judy Williams.
       
Although the Fire Chief in Orange won't confirm or deny it, the local Fire Marshal tells the New Haven Register that the blaze is connected to an outdoor wood burning furnace.

Those stoves can provide significant savings to homeowners.

They are common sight in many local communities.

"A lot of people have resorted to that as a way of saving some money and things as far as the oil burning furnaces and things a lot of people have started to set up their own wood burning furnaces outside and they are all regulated," said Williams.

Still some have raised concerns with DEEP about the potential health effects that could result from the smoke emitted from the furnaces.

Although we still don't have any definitive word on what caused the fire, neighbors are grateful that a family they call very well-known and well-liked made it out safely.

"Thank God, everybody was alerted and got them out," said Williams, "and now we can always fix a house that's for sure."

Fire investigators say they expect to announce the exact cause of the fire on Hawthorne Lane at some point Tuesday.