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Two homes, occupied by members of the Smith family, were destroyed in a fire Thursday at Smith Fork in Phelps. A third home, occupied by another family member, was damaged but saved. No one was hurt in the blaze.
The fire occurred at Smith Fork Road. The first home was occupied by Floyd Smith, 83, his wife Geraldine Smith, 76, their daughters Margaret Smith and Kathy Casey and Kathy’s daughters 9-year-old Samantha Casey and 7-year-old Halie Casey.
The Smiths’ son, Ricky, lived in the home next door. A trailer occupied by another daughter, Vivian, was close by and received heat damage.
Phelps Volunteer Fire Chief Ronnie Vaughan said the elderly Smiths’ home was fully engulfed and the fire had spread to the other structure when the department arrived on the scene. The Kimper and Blackberry Volunteer Fire departments came to aid the Phelps department.
A fire hydrant was close to the fire, but was not functioning, according to Margaret Smith.
“The water in the creek was too low for the firefighters to pump,” she said. “Blackberry and Kimper had to bring water.”
Both houses were a total loss according to Phelps Fire Chief Ronnie Vaughan.
They lost both houses and all their possessions, he said. He added that the American Red Cross would help the family with temporary shelter if the family doesn’t want to stay with relatives.
Chief Vaughn said although the department was unsure of the cause of the fire, it did not appear suspicious in nature.
The Phelps Fire Department responded with eight men, three trucks, a rescue vehicle and were on the scene for over two hours.
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