2 Children Are to Blame After Fire Destroys Aberdeen Home
BALTIMORE, Md. (WJZ) -- Children playing with fire are to blame for a fire that destroyed an Aberdeen home Tuesday evening and displaced the family that had just moved in, authorities said.
The home, located in the 4800 block of Philadelphia Road, went up in flames after 7 p.m., according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office. It took 40 firefighters about 30 minutes to get the fire under control.
"It quickly accelerated especially once it got into the vinyl siding, straight up into the attic up into the roof area," said Oliver Alkire, senior deputy with the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
No one was hurt. But a family dog and pet bird died in the fire.
Damage to the home, which is considered a total loss, was estimated to be about $100,000.
Investigators said the family, which moved in last Friday, had left about an hour before flames broke out to run errands. While they were gone, two children, age 5, set fire to a couple of trash bags on the back porch after they found a lighter, the Fire Marshal's Office said in a news release.
The Red Cross and Harford County Disaster Assistance are helping the family until they find a new home.
The children will not face charges, authorities say.
"It is just strictly juvenile fire play. It's tragic, but again it's not malicious, it's not intentional," said Alkire.