Virginia Home Destroyed By Fire For Second Time

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) -- A year after Hiram Taylor and his wife moved back into their house after it was ravaged by fire, a second blaze destroyed their home Tuesday.

Tuesday's fire started when gasoline apparently leaked from a pickup truck Taylor was working on and ignited, Newport News Fire Department spokesman Dana Perry said. Taylor grabbed a garden hose and sprayed water on the fire.

``Spraying water on a gasoline fire only causes the flames to spread,'' she said.

By the time firefighters arrived, the flames had spread to the front of the house and to a boat in the driveway next door.

The blaze destroyed the truck, the boat and the Taylors' house, as well as damaging a car. Fire officials estimated damage at $100,000.

The Taylors had moved back into the house a year ago this month after it was rebuilt following a fire caused by a faulty extension cord in January 2003, Perry said.

On Tuesday, the new roof had a gaping hole in it. Pieces of attic insulation littered the living room, and the intense heat had melted most of the white vinyl siding and brown trim.

Information from: Daily Press