5 Displaced After Norcross Fire, No Injuries

NORCROSS, GA — A Norcross family was displaced after a Friday, Nov. 15 fire in their Summerour Street NW home, according to a release from Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services.

Firefighters were dispatched at 3:34 a.m. Friday to the house where the caller said there were flames in the kitchen. Quick to act, they arrived at 3:41 a.m. and had the fire under control at 3:53 a.m.

Crews were expecting the fire to be at an apartment complex due to the abundance of complexes on the street, but arrived to find fire and smoke pushing out of a one-story, single-family house.

Additional crews requested were canceled, and the on-scene crews got to work. They fought the flames that were melting the carport. Firefighters were met with "heavy fire" entering the home through the kitchen.

Firefighters were aggressive, allowing crews to douse the fire before it spread to the living room.

The department said the occupants of the home were woken up by the sound of a leaking faucet in the kitchen. They looked under the sink to try to find the source, and found fire. They all evacuated immediately and called the fire department. The smoke alarms in the home were inoperable.

The exact cause of the fire is undetermined, but investigators couldn't rule out an electrical fire as the cause. Fire damage affected the kitchen and living room and there was heavy smoke damage throughout the building.

The family declined assistance from the American Red Cross, and there were no injuries.

Firefighters warn all citizens to:

• Be sure to install working smoke alarms on every level of the home and in each bedroom.
• Develop a home escape plan and practice fire drills regularly.
• Check and maintain home heating appliances such as the furnace, fireplace and space heater.