Woman injured in Lenoir City house fire

Don Jacobs knoxnews.com

Firefighters on Thursday were trying to determine the cause of a fire that consumed a Lenoir City home and sent its occupant to a hospital with smoke inhalation.

The fire was reported at 9:41 p.m. Wednesday by a passing Lenoir City Police Department officer, according to Lenoir City Fire Department Deputy Chief Tony Brock.

“It was fully involved when we got dispatched,” Brock said.

Brock said four pieces of firefighting equipment and 21 emergency workers converged on the two-story home at 730 Crooked Oak Drive.

The woman occupying the home was already out of the house and being cared for by neighbors by the time firefighters arrived. The woman was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center for treatment of smoke inhalation.

Because of the damage to the home, Brock said he was unsure if the house was outfitted with smoke alarms. He had not interviewed the injured woman and was unclear how she learned of the flames and escaped from the home.

Brock said heat from the fire was so intense it melted vinyl siding on a home next to it in the subdivision.

Damage to the home was so extensive Brock said, walls that did not collapse were leaning dangerously. Firefighters cleared the scene about 1:30 a.m., Brock said.

No emergency workers were injured battling the blaze.