CAPE GIRARDEAU COUPLE DIES IN BLAZE CAUSED BY HEATER

A Cape Girardeau couple died in a fire caused by an electric space heater early Thursday morning, authorities said.

The fire started on the back porch where Marion Reed, 63, spent many of his summer days. Reed was often seen sitting in his wheelchair keeping watch on his backyard and traffic along Water Street, said Tom Hinkebein, a fire department shift commander.

Reed and Gloria Jenkins, age undetermined, were probably dead before the fire at 814 N. Spanish St. was reported, said Max Jauch, Cape Girardeau assistant fire chief.

They were pronounced dead at the scene by Cape Girardeau County Deputy Coroner John Clifton, who said the cause of death for both was smoke inhalation.

Firefighters responded to the fire at the one-story, wood-frame house at 4:37 a.m., reaching the house six minutes later.

When the 10 firefighters arrived with two pumper trucks and one ladder truck, they attempted to enter the house through the front door. The back porch was already engulfed in flames, Jauch said.

Firefighters were immediately confronted by a burst of flames from the mixing of fresh air with smoke and heated gases inside the house. This "flash over" effect was created in the living room and bedroom by the fire's reaction to the smoke and gases that had built up around the ceiling, which Jauch said is not uncommon.

No firefighters were injured, he said.

The fire was brought under control at 4:58 a.m.

Reed was found in the bathroom and Jenkins in the living room, Jauch said.

Reed's wheelchair was blocking the door to the bathroom, Hinkebein said. Jenkins was found a few feet from the front door, he said.

The electrical heater that started the fire was located on the back porch, which was covered by a plastic tarp.

It appeared to be an older-model heater, which unlike newer versions does not shut itself off when knocked over, Hinkebein said.

Older space heaters are a common cause for fires, he said. "People don't buy the new ones because the old ones last forever," Hinkebein said.

The fire moved quickly through the house, Jauch said.

"It had already advanced into the kitchen area by the time we got the call," he said.

A properly installed smoke detector can give a warning five minutes or so before smoke inhalation becomes a problem. "It'll pick up the smoke before you ever will," Hinkebein said.

The last fatal fire in Cape Girardeau occurred in 1991 a block away from Thursday's fire. Three were killed at 731 N. Spanish St. in what firefighters described as the worst residential blaze in Cape Girardeau in 46 years.