Family of six escapes house fire Wednesday morning

Smoke detectors alerted a family of six Wednesday morning that their home at 1311 Davis St. was on fire.

Holly and Michael Wolff and four children, ranging in age from 11 to 16 years old, safely evacuated the house around 8 a.m., said Poplar Bluff Fire Chief Mike Moffitt. The family was lucky to have smoke detectors which awakened them from sleep, he explained.

When firefighters from three stations arrived, they saw smoke coming from the house’s eves and the roof’s ventilation. Once entry was made, fire was found in a bedroom.

Crews extinguished the fire using 1,000 gallons of water. They used the thermal imaging camera to confirm the fire was out. Fire crews were on the scene for more than two hours.

Moffitt explained while none of the family members were injured, two of the youth have special needs and the family did lose some of their health care equipment.

The family will not be able to return to the home since all the utilities have been shut off, Moffitt said.

The Red Cross already is working with the family to replace the equipment and assist in taking care of their needs, he added.

The cause of the fire is believed to be unintentional, but the state fire marshal’s office is investigating.

Other agencies present were the Butler County EMS, Municipal Utilities, Poplar Bluff Code Enforcement and the Poplar Bluff Police Department.

The property is owned by Aaron McIntosh.