Burglar bars on windows in fatal fire

NFPA Journal, May/Jun 2002 by Tremblay, Kenneth J

TEXAS

A lack of smoke alarms and burglar bars on windows contributed to the deaths of three people in a house fire.

The one-story, single-family house was 35 feet (11 meters) long and 30 feet (9 meters) high. The exterior walls of the woodframe structure were aluminum sided, and it had an asphalt roof There were no smoke alarms or sprinklers.

Four adults were in the house, including a 76-year-old man who was debilitated by a stroke.

The elderly man, a 41-year-old man, and two women, ages 66 and 43, were asleep when the fire broke out on the living room couch.

The fire was detected by a neighbor who saw the flames and called 911 at about 3:00 a.m. The residents' escape attempts were hampered by the fire and smoke blocking the exit and by the burglar bars blocking the windows. The burglar bars didn't have a quick-release mechanism.

The 43-year-old woman survived with burn and smoke inhalation injuries. The bodies of the three others were found on their beds.

A final cause determination had not been made at the time of the report.

The house, valued at $30,000, and its contents, valued at $5,000, were a total loss. There were no firefighter injuries.

KENNETH I TREMBLAY is a technical project assistant with Firewise Communities and a career lieutenant with the Lexing. ton, Massachusetts, Fire Department.