NOTICE OF INVESTIGATION
Date: 2/11/2026
Time: 11:13 a.m.
Location / Address: 101 Creek View Court, Street, Harford County
Type of Incident: Dwelling Fire
Description of Structure / Property: One-story, single-family dwelling
Injuries or Deaths (YES/NO/NA): None
# of Displaced: Three adults
Estimated $ Loss: Structure: $150,000 Contents: $100,000
Smoke Alarm Status: Present - activated after fire discovery
Fire Alarm / Sprinkler Status: Not present
Arrests(s) (YES/NO/NA): N/A
Primary Responding Fire Department: Whiteford Volunteer Fire Company/Bel Air VFC
# of Alarms: 1 # Of Firefighters: 35
Time to Control: 20 minutes
Discovered By: Occupant / Amazon Delivery Driver
Area of Origin: Front porch
Preliminary Cause: Discard woodstove ashes
Additional Information: An 84-year-old female occupant was home alone and in the basement when she heard her dog barking and then saw smoke through a window. When she went upstairs to check, she saw a fire on the front porch through the front door. She opened the back door to let her two cats out. At about the same time, an Amazon driver saw the fire and called 911. She then saw her trying to exit through the side sliding glass door and helped by pulling her out. The dog escaped as well.
PLEASE! Treat ALL ashes and coals as HOT ashes, even when you think they had time enough to cool. Take care to dispose of them wisely. Your house, deck, or garage is an unsafe place to store ashes. Store cooled ashes in a tightly covered metal container and keep it outside and at least 10 feet from your home or nearby buildings.
The Office of the State Fire Marshal recommends the following:
- Do not discard your ashes into any combustible container such as a paper or plastic bag, a cardboard box, or a plastic trash can.
- Do not place ash containers on decks, porches, or in garages.
- Put ashes into a non-combustible metal container with a lid.
- Pour water into the container to make sure the ashes are cool.
- Keep your can OUTSIDE the home, away from your fireplace or stove and anything combustible.
- Teach all family members to handle ashes from your fireplace or wood stove safely.
 Photo Credit - OSFM
 Photo Credit - OSFM
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