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Woman displaced by early morning house fire By Tim Grace, Enterprise staff writer
BROCKTON — An early morning fire damaged an Ashfield Drive home Thursday, leaving one woman temporarily homeless.
Deputy Fire Chief Timothy Murphy said no one was hurt in the blaze, but the split-level, ranch-style house at 102 Ashfield St. was scorched inside and out, sustaining about $30,000 in damage.
Murphy said the house's sole occupant was in bed watching television just before 1 a.m. when her dog began to bark.
The woman went down to the lower level to investigate, saw smoke and fled to a neighbor's home.
Exterior siding along the back of the house and the inside of a rear room were both burning when firefighters arrived, according to Murphy.
Firefighters had the flames extinguished in about 20 minutes, but the fire melted the house's wiring and damaged gas and plumbing pipes.
Murphy said investigators had yet to determine the fire's cause Thursday evening.
A dog trained to sniff out traces of fire accelerant, such as gasoline, was brought in to check the site, but found nothing.
"They've just about ruled out arson," Murphy said, and investigators are looking at the possibility that a discarded cigarette may have started the fire outside the house.
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