Home destroyed in fire

A Great Cacapon family of six lost their home in a fire before Christmas.

The fire call came in around 10:50 a.m. on Tuesday, December 19, said Assistant Fire Chief Roger Steiner of the Great Cacapon Volunteer Fire Com-pany. The fire was located at 1751 Woodmont Road at the home of Heath and Cynthia Jessee and their four children. No one was at home at the time of the blaze.

When firefighters arrived at the scene, the back side of the doublewide trailer was totally involved, said Steiner. The home was a total loss, he said. Steiner estimated the damage at $125,000 to $150,000 or more. While they believe the fire began in or around the kitchen, the cause is undetermined due to extensive damage at the scene, said Steiner.

Volunteer fire and rescue units from Great Cacapon, Berkeley Springs, Paw Paw, Hancock, Hedgesville, Needmore and Orleans responded to the blaze. There were no injuries to firefighters, he said.

Units from Reynolds Store, Needmore, Levels and Slanesville Volunteer Fire Companies remained on standby for fire stations in Morgan County. The Morgan County Rescue Service, the Morgan County Office of Emergency Services, Allegheny Power, the American Red Cross and Washington County Air Unit 25 from Hagerstown also responded to the scene.

Washington County Air Unit 25 refilled firefighters' air bottles for their breathing apparatus and the 4500-pound bottles for their cascade system which can fill the smaller air bottles, said Steiner. Their cascade system was low and firefighters were rolling through the portable air bottles due to the large amount of smoke at the fire, he said.

Two rekindles

Firefighters were on the scene until about 3:40 p.m. that afternoon, said Steiner. They returned for two rekindles, one at 5 a.m. on Wednesday, December 20 and another around noon later that Wednesday, he said.

The local chapter of the American Red Cross was

contacted and was on the scene to help address the family's immediate needs. Some clothing was collected through community efforts, said Steiner. The Great Cacapon Post Office is a drop off site for items for the family, who have two nine-year old boys, an 11-year-old boy and an eight-year old girl, he said.

Help needed

The Jessee family needs clothing, bedding, blankets and sheets as well as monetary help. Needed children's clothing are size 10 in boys' pants, boys' shirts and boys' jackets, size 12 in boys' shirts and boys' jackets and size 29 by 30 in boys' pants and a size 12 in girls' dresses and blouses. The children's shoe sizes are boys' size 6 1/2 and 3 1/ 2 and a girls' size 2 1/ 2.

Adult clothing sizes needed are a large in a men's shirt, 36 by 32 men's pants and a men's size 10 in shoes and a large in a women's shirt/blouse, size 18 in women's pants and a size eight in women's shoes.

For more information on how you can help the family, call 258-3155, 258-4333, 258-3455 or 947-7085.