A Summit family is picking up the pieces after their home burned in an early morning fire Thursday morning.
Summit Fire Chief Stan McMorris said crews responded to the home of Allison Frith at 7985 Ward Jackson Road at 6:37.
He said the fire was spreading as firefighters arrived on the scene.
“It was out of control when we got there,” McMorris said.
He said the fire started on the back of the home on its eastern side and spread through the attic, burning through the roof.
“It was a lot of fire in the house, but there are some things the family can recover. It was severely damaged,” McMorris said.
Firefighters from Smithdale and Mars Hill also responded.
“There were 16 Summit firefighters on the scene and I don’t know how many came from Smithdale and Mars Hill,” he said.
It took firefighters three hours to contain the fire and clear the scene, McMorris said.
Three Summit tank trucks and one each from Smithdale and Mars Hill supplied water.
Frith said she and her son Everette were home when the fire broke out.
“It started in the fireplace in the chimney. It’s on the east side of the home. We made it out OK,” she said.
When asked how she was doing, Frith responded, “I’m OK. I’m saying I’m OK, but I’m not OK.”
Frith said her family lost everything. “We did have homeowner’s insurance,” she said.
Frith is staying with family members, and a GoFundMe account has been set up to help the family.
“They need clothing. They lost all dishes, pots and pans, towels, linens (and) their beds are gone,” said Missy Turnage, Frith’s cousin. “They’ve lost everything. There’s pretty much nothing left,” she said, “They need a lot of prayers.”
