There was another fire in Coatesville last night:

Too close for comfort!!!!!!

Last night, around 9:30, two of my girls were in the kitchen and one was in the dining room on the computer. (The phone jack is in the dining room.) I was watching TV in the living room waiting for the timer to go off for the loaf of bread in the oven.

The younger 2 smelled smoke, and thought the bread was burning. The older one looked out the back door, saw the flames, and shouted “There’s a fire!” The girls handed me the phone to call 9 1 1, because they figured I'd get the address right. I dialed on the run and saw the flames for myself. As it was, I heard the sirens from the nearest firehouse before the dispatcher finished getting information from me.

The first fire engine arrived just as I hung up the phone. I think a cop was just ahead of it, because someone with a male voice was blasting the flames with an extinguisher.

This was not a vacant house. There were people inside watching TV, who knew nothing until a neighbor across the street knocked on their door. The vacant house between my house and the torched house was unaffected.

Police, fire, ATF, and news agents were running all over the neighborhood between houses. The police and fire marshal took statements from my daughters and me. Chester Avenue was blocked off all the way from Oak Street to Lincoln Highway, its whole length. My girls said the fire engines in front of the house and behind it were there past 1 am.

Now there is an ABC channel 6 newsvan in the alley and plenty of lookie-loos going by.

Someday soon this psycho is going to trip up, I pray.