Home in Buna destroyed by fire

A rural Jasper County home was reduced to ruins after a fire, believed to have been sparked by a heat lamp, engulfed the property. The blaze, which began around 9:45 a.m. Tuesday, left little of the home standing, according to first responders. Beech Grove Volunteer Fire Department Chief Jamie Gunter said, "It's very unfortunate, those things happen though. We have had them here before, we've had some last year, we had some the year before that. Knock on wood we haven't had one this year yet but, hopefully it stays that way." The Buna and Kirbyville fire departments worked together to extinguish the flames at the house located off Highway 96 South. Gunter noted that firefighters often see an increase in house fires during colder months. "People bringing out heat lamps, space heaters, propane heaters, it's natural. When the weather gets cold we always see an uptick," Gunter said. The homeowner, an elderly woman, told KFDM/Fox 4 that the fire originated in a well shed behind her house, where a heat lamp was being used to warm water pipes. "We just try to be proactive in the message that we send to the people, and that proactive message is keep your combustibles away from your heat sources at a three foot minimum," Gunter said. He also emphasized the importance of avoiding power strips and extension cords, and not overloading electrical circuits. "A lot of folks don't realize the electrical load that a space heater or a heat lamp... a heat lamp pulls pretty significant amount, up to 500 watts of power itself so that can add up pretty quick," Gunter said. Gunter further encouraged residents to routinely test their smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.