Fire on Jones Road Displaces 91-Year-Old Homeowner

A fire on the 500 block of Jones Road in Severn displaced a 91-year-old man Thursday morning.

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Capt. Jim Rostek, a spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Fire Department, said firefighters responded to a call at 8:56 a.m. of a fire coming from inside the house.

Jermell Gallaway, a nearby neighbor, made the call.

“I saw smoke coming from the back of the house then I saw a whole lot of flames. It just spread through the house,” Gallaway said. “It broke the glass [of the windows].”

The fire reached an “all-hands” status around 9:10 a.m., said Rostek, meaning that all personnel had a responsibility. “All the people on the scene were working,” Rostek said.

Approximately 40 firefighters, medics and battalion leaders worked the fire and contained the flames shortly after the “all-hands” status.

Initially, firefighters feared occupants remained in the home so a search and recovery effort was made to scour the home for any trapped residents. After conducting the operation, Rostek said no one was found in the house.

The 91-year-old homeowner, James L. Williams, was taken to the hospital as a precaution after experiencing an increase in blood-pressure, according to his son, Michael Williams.

The total damaged of the flames is still under investigation, said Rostek, as is the cause of the fire.  The owner of the home told a friend that he thought it started in the kitchen after hearing a “popping noise” where the microwave was stationed.