Source The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
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Nov. 17--An elderly man from Aleppo tried desperately on Wednesday afternoon to douse a raging fire with a garden hose, and struggled to break free from the grasp of neighbors so he could re-enter his home to try to save his wife.
Arthur L. Hoston, 91, suffered severe burns to his face, arms and hands in the fire that destroyed his home at Ferndale Avenue and Weber Street Extension, said William Davis Jr., chief of the township's volunteer fire department.
The body of a woman -- believed to be Hoston's wife, Frances Pauline Hoston, 81, who was known in her church as "Miss Pauly" -- was later found in the rubble.
"'Grandma' is one of the sweetest, kindest, most loving women I know," said Hilary Brown, 22, of Sewickley, who said she used to date Hoston's grandson and often spent time with the older woman. "She was very spiritually connected. She took her relationship with God very seriously and it showed through.
"She made the best mac and cheese I've ever tasted," Brown added.
Quaker Valley High School students said they were on the bus coming home from school when they saw the fast-burning fire and neighbors holding Hoston.
"He had a garden hose, trying to put out the fire," said Rocco Brown, 16. "He kept saying his wife was in there. He kept saying 'Let me go!' but there was no way he could get in there. It was completely on fire."
Neighbors William and Linda Petrie ran to the Hoston home when they saw the flames coming from the basement and first-floor windows.
"He was desperately trying to get in there," William Petrie said. "He was bewildered, beside himself. I asked a passer-by to help control him. I got to about 10 feet from the door but couldn't get in. It was searing.
"It was very hard watching and not being able to do anything."
Hoston was taken to UPMC Mercy, Uptown, where he was admitted to the burn unit in serious condition.
Davis said the cause of the fire, which was reported at 3:20 p.m., remains under investigation, but that it appears to be accidental and might have started in or around a kerosene heater in the basement.
"This is not the way you want someone to pass on, but we believe she's with the Lord," said Leslie Davis, who described herself as a distant relative and fellow parishioner at Triumph Baptist Church in Sewickley. "She was a good singer, a former choir director, a faithful wife and a faithful mother."
