Family Narrowly Escapes Another GA Arson Blaze
By Liz Fabian
Source The Macon Telegraph
April 27 -- MACON, GA -- A family of five might have died in Macon's latest arson fire if it hadn't been for a man walking by.
David Pierce was headed down Second Street just before 9 a.m. Friday when he saw the smoke at house number 2438, next door to the vacant house at 2426 that's burned twice in recent weeks.
He broke a window and alerted John Battle's family of five who were still sleeping as deadly smoke was filling the wooden house.
Pierce had choice words for the fire big besieging the neighborhood near Ell Street in recent months.
"It's not an empty house. People are actually living there. It's heinous," he said. "It's the work of the devil is what it is."
Fire Chief Marvin Riggins looked on as multiple firefighters came out and dumped their air tanks after extinguishing the flames that appeared to have ignited on the front porch.
Riggins and Battalion Chief Tim Johnson know the risks firefighters face as the arson spree nears nearly 30 cases in the residential side streets near Eisenhower Parkway.
"We're taking it very seriously," Johnson said of the investigation. "No one was on the outside engaged in any activity, according to the resident, so we're really looking at it."
Arson investigators Lt. Ben Gleaton and Sgt. Steve Wesson huddled in the street to compare notes as they track the apparent pyromaniac plaguing the neighborhood, often in the early morning around 9 a.m..
They urge the community to come forward with any tips or reports of suspicious activity.
Anonymous callers to the Georgia Arson hotline at 800-282-5804 could be eligible for a reward if the information leads to an arrest.
Calls to Macon Regional Crimestoppers 877-68-CRIME could reap a similar cash reward.
This time the fire bug almost claimed five lives.
"We're blessed that they were able to get out in time," Johnson said. "Although it's only about a block from the fire station, still it doesn't take very long for the smoke to be able to cause them to not be able to get out."
Battle said the smoke was thick when he heard Pierce warning them.
"We tried to get out as quick as we can," Battle said. "Thank God we made it out safe. We don't know what happened, we just know that the house was full of smoke and was burning real bad."
Although Battle's family sustained heavy material loss in the fire, they realize it could have been much worse if Pierce hadn't happened by at the right time.
"We would have burned up or died in the smoke," he said.
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