July 3: Newport Beach, CA – Vapors from a plastic boat-fuel container wafted into a water heater pilot light, causing an explosion at the home of the estate of Buddy Ebsen, who played the Clampett patriarch on the 1960s comedy “The Beverly Hillbillies.” Damage was confined to the basement.
July 10: Mineral City, OH – The local fire station was destroyed when a severe storm swept through the Tuscarawas Valley region, knocking down trees and disrupting electrical service. The building was thought to be a total loss.
July 12: Washington Twp., MI – Fire crews worked for nearly five hours to battle a blaze that started in the basement and ended up being four alarms.
July 13: Cookeville, TN – A family just finishing supper smelled smoke in their two-story wood-frame home and found flames on the second floor. All were able to escape.
July 24: Chester, PA – Three children, ages 4, 6 and 10, died after a morning fire broke out in their two-story home. Two adults and several other children were rescued and five firefighters were injured. Three of the children lived with their parents in the home while others were cousins staying overnight.
July 31: Las Vegas, NV – Damage was estimated to start at $4 million as a result of a two-alarm fire that extensively ravaged a home in Tournament Hills on July 24. Investigators determined it did not involve foul play.
Thanks to contributors: Don Bain, Jay K. Bradish, Bill Eisner, James McNutt, Bo Power and Timothy R. Szymanski.
