TURKEY — The cause of a fire that gutted a Turkey Highway home last week has not been able to be determined, Sampson County Fire Marshal’s officials said. The fire initially destroyed a garage, then rekindled and ate away at the rest of the home later that same day.
A call of the fire at 7662 N.C. 24 (Turkey Highway) came in at 3:17 p.m. Jan. 7. The residents, homeowner Judy Ruddle and her adult son Franklin, were at the home at the time of the fire, but were not injured. Ruddle was in the living room that afternoon when she saw reportedly smoke billowing into the front yard.
With Duplin County in close proximity, departments from both Sampson and Duplin were quickly on scene. The Turkey Fire Department, located a couple blocks away, was the primary agency that responded. Mutual aid was provided by Clinton, Taylors Bridge, Warsaw and Piney Grove in extinguishing the fire. They were on scene for more than three hours, until about 6:30 p.m., according to reports.
The home faces Turkey Highway on the western outskirts of the town, situated inside a fenced-in property at the corner of Turkey Highway and Thompson Street. The charred remains have been encased in yellow tape since the beginning of last week. A ramp is located in the front of the home, whose driveway goes straight onto N.C. 24.
Deputy Fire Marshal Josh Deaver said the fire originated in the enclosed vinyl garage, which connected to the home via a carport. Deaver said it was unclear what actually caused the fire at the home as there were numerous possible “ignition sources” in the garage.
A look at the charred remains showed just a concrete slab remaining where the garage once stood. The casing of a driveway light had partially melted away and a cabinet and riding mower, sitting on the concrete slab, had been reduced to burnt silouettes of their former selves.
While the Fire Marshal’s Office had not been able to pinpoint the cause of the blaze, Deaver said there was nothing suspicious about it.
He said it is not uncommon for fires to originate from garages, which often house electrical wiring from the home, gasoline, batteries and chargers among other items. Changing temperature can produce a volatile mix and can lead to such incidents, but Deaver stressed that narrowing any particular cause at the Turkey home has to this point proven futile.
He said that once Judy Ruddle noticed the smoke, she and her son made it out of the home and there were already flames visibly in the garage area. It is unknown how long the flames could have been contained in the garage before that. After units extinguished the flames and left the scene, the fire rekindled later that night, this time igniting in the attic of the house. That is when the majority of the damage was inflicted.
“The home sustained a substantial amount of damage due to that rekindle,” said Deaver.
The home, valued at $88,000, was said to be a total loss, the deputy fire marshal added, noting that dollar figure did not include the contents within. He said there were too many possible causes that investigators “can’t rule out” but said it is always the hope maybe details could surface that provide a little more closure.
“You may always get a piece of information later that can help narrow it down,” he stated.
