BY JANE PRENDERGAST
The Cincinnati Enquirer
EDGEWOOD -- Firefighters investigating an early Sunday morning blaze here credit a neighbor's nose for helping them find the flames that heavily damaged a Dudley Road home.
A resident of nearby Turkeyfoot Road smelled smoke and called the fire department about 4:15 a.m. But at that point, the flames were not even visible to one firefighter who had to drive past the burning house on his way to the fire station, said Assistant Chief Joe Landwehr.
"He drove right by there and didn't see anything," he said. "By the time we got back there, there were flames through the roof."
Investigators do not think the fire's cause is suspicious, Mr. Landwehr said. The fire, in which no one was hurt, likely will be blamed on an electrical problem in the garage, he said.
But before a final determination is made, officials want to talk with the home's owner, Ben Hays, to find out what might have been in the corner of the garage where the flames started. No one was home at the time of the fire.
Firefighters were on the scene, 137 Dudley Road, until about 9 a.m. A team of investigators from Kenton County's fire task force stayed around into the afternoon, sorting through the burned house and taking samples for testing, Mr. Landwehr said.
"We think it's going to be electrical," he said. "But we're still doing investigating on the cause. We're not sure yet."
Damage was estimated at $50,000. The fire was confined to the garage, utility room and part of the kitchen, leaving the rest of the house with smoke damage but salvageable, he said.
Investigators think the fire had been smoldering for about two hours, he said, before it built to the point of going through the roof.
