Downed power line causes Knapp Avenue fire

<span>A downed power line has been ruled as the cause of an overnight fire at a vacant house at 208 Knapp Avenue.</span>

<span>According to Chester Fire Chief Marty Bert, the line got pulled down by a fallen tree limb due to thunderstorm-related winds and pulled the electrical wires out of the meter box attached to the house.</span>

<span>"There was no meter in the meter box," Bert said. "The line got pulled down and pulled the wires out from the top of the box and when the line touched the box, it made the whole box live."</span>

<span>The Chester Fire Department was paged out at 11:04 p.m. Wednesday for the report of smoke in the area of 200 Knapp Avenue. The Ellis Grove Volunteer Fire Department was also paged to assist.</span>

<span>Bert said the electrical charge spread to the wiring inside the house and started the fire.</span>

<span>"When we got there, the house was full of smoke," Bert said. "All interior wall coverings were already removed, so we were able to get to it pretty quickly."</span>

<span>The house is owned by Brad Lankford and is in the process of being remodeled, according to Bert. A "For Sale" sign is displayed by the front door.</span>

<span>There were reportedly some tense moments for firefighters, as the power lines above them began to get hot and smolder.</span>

<span>"The power lines above the road were catching on fire all the way to the transformer through the alley on the other side," Bert said. "We pulled (our firefighters) out because there was no way to shut the power off.</span>

<span>"We had to pull them off and move our truck up."</span>

<span>Bert said firefighters were back in service at 12:45 a.m.</span>

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