Displaced New Kensington homeowner: Fire damage ‘ain’t no biggie’

Dec. 25--John Secrist was looking at the charred side of his New Kensington home Saturday, knowing it can be fixed.

As an electrician, he also has a good idea what caused the fire at his house, at 270 Charles Ave., late Friday.

Secrist's theory is backed up by fire officials: that a junction box over a recessed halogen light in the second-floor bathroom, over the course of years, transferred heat from the light that dried out and eventually ignited the material above it.

Secrist said he's done a lot of work on the house, where he's lived for three years, but the bathroom was the one room he didn't touch because it had already been redone and looked nice.

"It was the only room in the house I didn't want to tear apart," he said. "This didn't happen over night. This takes years to happen."

The fire was reported around 11:45 p.m. Friday, according to West­moreland County 911. It was ruled accidental and electrical in origin, starting in the bathroom, New Kensington Assistant Fire Chief Ed Saliba Jr. said.

About 45 firefighters from four New Kensington companies and the Lower Burrell rapid intervention team responded, Saliba said. They had the fire under control in 20 to 25 minutes.

There were no injuries.

Saliba said there was smoke and water damage to the second floor and the finished attic of the three-bedroom, brick-and-wood frame house, and extensive water damage to the first floor.

He estimated the damage to the house and contents at $45,000 to $50,000.

No one was home when the fire started. Secrist was across the street at his girlfriend's house; his son, Justin, 31, who lives with him was also out.

Next-door neighbor Maria Guzzo said she became aware of the fire when she heard someone pounding on Secrist's front door. When no one came out, Guzzo suspected Secrist was at his girlfriend's home, and she went across the street in her pajamas to tell him.

"We looked out, and it was just flames shooting up the side of the house," she said.

Secrist said he has insurance. He and his son are staying in a hotel for now.

Suffered bigger heartaches

Secrist said the fire "ain't no biggie" compared to other losses he's endured, including the deaths of his wife, sister and father in rapid succession in 2004 and 2005.

"Things like this are horrible," he said. But, "It's not the end of the world. There are other things out there way worse than this."

Secrist said the house is structurally fine and the damage is mostly cosmetic. Once work starts, he thinks it could be repaired in a couple of months.

"There's no way this house is a total loss," he said.

Secrist gave firefighters "all the credit in the world."

"I shook their hands and thanked every single one of them," he said. "They're amazing. They knocked that sucker out in no time.

"This could've been really bad," he said. "The damage is extensive, but it's not irreversible."

Brian C. Rittmeyer is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-226-4701 or brittmeyer@tribweb.com.

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