NORFOLK, VIRGINIA HOME HEAVILY DAMAGED IN MORNING FIRE. THE CAUSE AND ORIGIN INVESTIGATION IS ONGOING.

FEBRUARY, 14, 2015

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA (WAVY) 

A house fire on Bolton Street in Norfolk left a home heavily damaged and three people without a place to stay.

Fire crews responded to the 1300 block of Bolton Street near Goff Street just before 2 a.m. after receiving calls for a house fire. While en route, firefighters could see flames from a block away on Tidewater Drive, according to Battalion Chief Julian Williamson with the Norfolk Fire Department.

When firefighters got on the scene smoke and fire was pouring out of the home and the fire was growing rapidly, according to Williamson. Firefighters used multiple water lines to knock down the flames and bring it under control. It took about 30 minutes to bring it under control, Williamson said.

Three adults who live in the home were displaced and are being assisted by the Red Cross. A neighboring house sustained heat damage from the flames and had to be evacuated briefly, said Williamson.

No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation by the Fire Marshal’s office.

EIGHT-MONTH-OLD BOY DIES IN HOUSE FIRE IN NORFOLK, VIRGINIA. SPACE HEATERS WERE BEING USED IN THE HOUSE AND MAY HAVE SPARKED THE FIRE

FEBRUARY 14, 2015

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA:

An 8-month-old boy is dead after fire swept through a Norfolk duplex early Saturday.

Firefighters arrived in the 800 block of Little Bay Avenue just after 6 a.m. and saw smoke and flames coming from the building.

Battalion Chief Julian Williamson said a man and woman were outside when crews arrived. 

"The mother told them she tried to get back inside to save her child, in the bedroom, but the smoke and fire was too much," he said.

Firefighters fought the fire and searched for the child at the same time, but the child hadn't survived.

It took crews 40 minutes to get the fire out. 

Chief Williamson says space heaters were being used in the unit and may have caused the fire. He wasn't sure whether there were working smoke alarms.

A 13News Now viewer sent us photos showing police and fire trucks at the scene, which is next to Captain's Quarters Park. He said there were as many as eight fire trucks at the start of the fire.

There is extensive damage to the building. Neighbors are still trying to come to grips with the horrible tragedy.

"It's a horrible thing to lose a child, My heart goes out to them and I hope we can help them out with whatever they need and show some sense of community here. I know we will," said Joe Schein, who lives nearby.

A neighboring home was briefly evacuated during the firefight, but the residents have been allowed to return. That home had siding damaged by heat, Williamson noted.

Chief Williamson had these safety tips :

For space heater use:

-Keep them at least three feet away from walls and/or flammables.

-Never leave a heater on and leave children or pets

-Don't leave them on at night when you're sleeping.

-Heat your room and then unplug it 30 minutes before you go to sleep or leave.

-Make sure they're approved by UL or another accredited company.

- Be careful not to overload any electrical circuits.

For smoke alarms:

-Make sure you have one in every room.

-Test them at least once a month.

-Norfolk Fire and Rescue will install a free smoke alarm for residents. Contact 664-6616 to schedule an appointment.

Ohio prison system liable for elderly inmate's injuries

February 14, 2015

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A state court says the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction is liable for the injuries of an 80-year-old inmate who fell out of his top bunk.


A ruling by Ohio Court of Claims magistrate earlier this month says the state prison system knew the risks and shouldn't have assigned inmate Roy Buchanan to a top bunk.


Buchanan's complaint says he lost his balance and fell out of his bunk onto the concrete floor of the dorm where he lived at the Hocking Correctional Facility in December 2012.


The magistrate noted that Buchanan had back problems and a hernia, and his ability to climb in and out of an upper bunk was substantially limited.


Buchanan, now 82, was imprisoned in 2005 for rape.

VEHICLE, TRAIN CRASH IN FOSTORIA, OHIO

FEBRUARY 14, 2015 

FOSTORIA, OHIO

Two motorists escaped injury early today when their car collided with a Norfolk Southern train on Fostoria’s Columbus Avenue.  Fostoria police said a Mazda Protege driven by Van Adams, 28, of Toledo, went around downed crossing gates and was struck by an eastbound train at about 12:02 a.m. 

The car then hit a power pole near East Crocker Street.

Neither Adams nor a passenger, Martin Rickman, 31, of Toledo, was taken to the hospital, police said.

Police cited Adams for going around lowered crossing gates and for a license suspension.

/______________________________________________________/

A vehicle and train have collided in Fostoria.

The crash occurred about 1:20 p.m. at the Main Street crossing of CSX Transportation tracks north of Lytle Street, according to the Ohio Highway Patrol's Fremont post.

Troopers are still on scene as of 3 p.m. No details of injuries have been released. The train involved is also still at the scene and is blocking several nearby street crossings.

I guess Darwin's theory almost worked here.

AT LEAST 16 DEAD, 22 INJURED WHEN BUS AND FREIGHT TRAIN COLLIDE IN NORTHERN MEXICO

FEBRUARY 14, 2015

By PORFIRIO IBARRA, Associated Press

MONTERREY, Mexico (AP) — A passenger bus and a freight train collided at a grade crossing in northern Mexico, killing at least 16 people and injuring 22, a Mexican official said.

The official said the accident occurred Friday in the town of Anahuac, which is Tamaulipas state near the border city of Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas. The official was not authorized to be quoted by name.

The train's operator, Kansas City Southern de Mexico, issued a statement confirming there had been "a lamentable accident" between one of its trains and a passenger bus at about 5:25 p.m. The company said its employees reported "an undetermined number of dead and injured at the scene."

Kansas City Southern did not give a cause for the crash. The Mexican official said investigators were looking into whether the bus driver tried to beat the train to the crossing.

The train was operated by the Transporte Frontera line on a route from Nuevo Laredo to the neighboring state of Coahuila.