Man burned, pet bird dies in Port Jervis house fire

Jan. 30--PORT JERVIS -- Al Kaszuba was at the home of Mary Cuddy, his friend of about 50 years, Thursday afternoon, preparing for a grim task: driving back to the home he'd lived in since 2000, to board it up.

"I've been better," Kaszuba said, a day after fire tore through his home at 210 New Ball St. in Port Jervis. "But at least the burns don't hurt anymore."

Kaszuba suffered burns to both arms and the right side of his forehead while trying to rescue his macaw, Bubbus, from the fire that he discovered around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday.

"I was in the kitchen, getting ready to put supper on the table, when I saw a glow out back," he said. "I saw there was a fire on the back porch."

Kaszuba, who lived by himself in the house, grabbed a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, but it didn't work, he said.

"I picked up the cell phone to call for help, but I guess I was panicked, because it wouldn't work," Kaszuba said. "I ran next door, but the neighbors weren't home. There was a car coming up the street, so I stopped them and they called 911."

Port Jervis Fire Chief Dominic Cicalese said the department received multiple calls about the fire. The fire department and police department arrived within minutes to find the rear of the house in flames, but the fire soon grew to two-alarm status, the chief said. Within an hour, however, the fire was under control, and the scene was cleared by 11 p.m., Cicalese said.

Orange County Fire Investigators are examining the fire, but no cause had yet been determined, Cicalese said.

When Port Jervis police arrived, they entered the house to evacuate Kaszuba, who had gone back inside to rescue Bubbus from the flames, Cicalese said. But the conditions were too dire for the macaw, which Kaszuba had owned for six years. "She didn't make it, after all," Kaszuba said.

Port Jervis EMS treated Kaszuba at the scene, and Port Jervis Volunteer Ambulance Corps members transported him to Bon Secours Community Hospital in Port Jervis for further treatment.

Kaszuba is staying with Cuddy temporarily until permanent lodging can be figured out, he said.

An insurance adjuster was at the home Thursday afternoon. Windows were broken out on both the main floor and the top floor; vent holes punched in the roof by firefighters were ringed with charred soot. The front door was gone, and the back door also appeared to be missing.

An empty birdcage lay on top of ruined belongings that were piled in front of the house.

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