Early-Morning Fire Destroys One Home, Damages Another

An early-morning fire has destroyed one home and damaged another. Just before 6 this morning, fire crews arrived in the 1800 block of Poland Street to find a single-story, wood-frame home heavily involved with fire and smoke. There was another single-story, wood-frame home in front of that one. Fire crews found that the occupant of the first home -- a 28-year-old man -- had escaped safely, so they worked to attack the fire, which spread quickly. The blaze was brought under control a little after 6:30. The first home sustained heavy fire and smoke damage, and the adjacent home had some moderate fire and smoke damage to the rear, but fire crews were able to save the structure. One firefighter sprained his ankle while exiting the home. He was taken to Willis Knighton for treatment and later released. Investigators say the cause of the fire was determined to be an overloaded electrical outlet in one of the bedrooms, where the fire originated.