Happy ending to Pine Street chimney blaze

CORNWALL — A chimney fire at the Pine Street home of Pat and Jerry Blakey on Feb. 2 burned itself out by the time firefighters arrived. But it was a close call that served as a good reminder of how unexpectedly the most common residential fire of the season can happen.“Being a fireman, I had been at many chimney fires, and had one in my home before,” Jerry Blakey said later that day. “But there was no roar. We had no clue inside the house what was going on.”He had restarted a fire in the woodstove they use to help heat their two-story Colonial. They have been using wood that was cut three years ago and was presumably very dry. There was no loud roar from the fire as is often the case when creosote residue ignites. It was only by chance that a little before 10 a.m., Blakey saw a clue that was a red flag to his trained eye.“My son, David, had just come by and I was at the door. I looked out and saw the smoke from our chimney blowing back toward the house. It was orange instead of white.”Blakey immediately did two things, one right and one wrong. He checked the stove and closed off the air supply to try to smother the fire — and he hesitated to call 911.“That’s a lesson to be remembered. Always call the fire department right away, no matter what,” he said.He was able to use his experience to assess the situation, and he was thinking he didn’t want a bunch of volunteers to come out for no reason. But he quickly remembered the advice he would have given others. He also knows that the real danger is when the fire finds its way into other areas of the house. Properly handling a chimney fire includes checking the adjoining structure.“The fire department responded very quickly. They did a great job of venting smoke from the house. There was no smoke damage at all,” Blakey said, adding on a humorous note, “The firemen mentioned they had not had a chimney fire drill yet this winter, so I guess they’re all set. I told them I’d send them a bill.”The other lesson is prevention. The home is relatively new, built in 1989 (completed just about the time the tornado hit that section of town). The couple has decided an annual cleaning is in order. The last was in 2009, but this fire was proof that a chimney in good condition and the use of well-seasoned wood may not be enough.They will now also regularly use flue cleaners, which are burned in a fireplace or stove like a log of wood. Blakey said responding Fire Marshal Mike Fitting recommended them as effective in helping to clean creosote from chimneys.