Timely response saves Possession Road home

"Firefighter Eldon Baker dumps insulation outside a Possession Road house Monday as Bob Howie (on ladder) extinguishes the last traces of a smoldering fire.Matt Johnson / staff photoA fire that smoldered right through Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and perhaps several days prior left a Clinton-area couple nervous but not homeless Monday afternoon thanks to a quick response by local firefighters.At about 1:15 p.m. Monday, firefighters from Fire Protection District 3 rushed to the 7712 Possession Road home of Stanley and Mary Tauscher after the couple called 911 to report that smoke was pouring out of the attic of their home. According to scene commander Donald Elliot, the smoke centered on a spot in the attic and ceiling of the older, one-story house that had super-heated due to a recent fire in a wood stove.Elliot said the heat from the fire probably seeped through old mortar between bricks of the chimney. The heat set several layers of blown insulation smoldering, which in turn started a wood beam smoking as well. Firefighters had to remove the insulation around the chimney as well as a portion of the beam to stop the fire.The house's owners, Stanley and Mary Tauscher, were home at the time of the fire. Neither one was hurt in the fire.Because the fire was small and contained, firefighters were able to leave the house habitable and almost free of smoke damage. That would not have been the case, Elliot said, had the Tauschers been away from home for the holidays.It's lucky they got it in time, he said. Elliot said the chimney at the house was clean at the time of the fire. "

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