Grill may have sparked early morning fire at Colleton County home

COLLETON COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – Emergency crews responded to an early morning fire at a large home on New Year’s Day which may have started at a built-in grill on the porch.

Officials with Colleton County Fire Rescue said they received notice of a fire alarm activation at a home that they referred to as the “big house” at Bluff Plantation shortly before 3:30 a.m.

Smoke was coming from the three-story structure when firefighter-paramedics arrived on the scene.

“Crews met with the property manager and found the interior of the building charged with smoke and fire in one wall and in the 30-foot vaulted ceiling,” officials said.

The homeowners told firefighters that they were awakened by the smell of smoke before the fire alarm was activated.

“They discovered flames above a built-in grille on an enclosed porch. The fire had extended into the wall, burning into the interior and then branching into the ceiling, burning to the peak of the roof,” officials said. “The homeowner threw multiple buckets of water on the fire knocking down the flames over the grille.”

A property manager arrived and used a garden hose to douse much of the flames around the wall. Firefighters pulled portions of the wooden ceiling to reach some of the flames.

“The property manager had some scaffolding available which he brought to the scene. He and firefighters assembled the scaffolding in the great room to reach the ceiling, allowing them to remove the remainder of the burned portions and cool the remaining burned areas,” officials explained.

The ceiling was damaged, but the structure was saved. No injuries were reported.

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Author: Tim Renaud