On Friday, October 12, the historic Forney home at 400 S. Center, formerly owned by the Spellman family, suffered fire damage to the front porch area. The fire is believed to have started between 5:30 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. while the current homeowners were away.
On Friday, October 12, the historic Forney home at 400 S. Center, formerly owned by the Spellman family, suffered fire damage to the front porch area. The fire is believed to have started between 5:30 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. while the current homeowners were away.
Homeowner Christie Conaway was out of town and her husband and children were away from the home when the blaze broke out. The fire began on the the front porch of the beautiful historic home. Thanks to alert neighbors and a jogger passing by, the fire was contained to the porch area until the Forney Fire Department could arrive and put the flames out.
Conaway said that local business owner Bret Foster was jogging by and was flagged down by the Conaway's neighbor who had just called 911 to report the fire. Foster immediately took action by grabbing the garden hose at the Conaway's house and spraying water on the fire. Another neighbor, Forney Fire Chief Rick Townsend, also came running to assist Foster in getting water on the fire. FFD responded within minutes and were able to contain the fire damage to the wrap-around front porch area. There was smoke and soot damage to the entire porch and some of the trees and bushes were scorched as well. The heat from the flames cracked the windows on the sides and top of the front door of the home.
The City of Forney Fire Marshall is investigating the fire as suspicious. At this time the cause is listed as undetermined. There is no estimate yet on the amount it will cost to fix the damage to the home. Most of the damage occurred from the smoke produced by the fire.
Christie Conaway is extremely thankful for Bret Foster and her neighbors quick actions, “If it hadn't been for Bret, if he hadn't stepped in, the whole house could have been up in flames in five more minutes.” Mark and Christie Conaway moved to Forney and purchased the old Spellman home in 2008. The historic home was built in 1895 by Robert Preston Rhea. Mrs. Conaway said that the house plumbing had a major leak last month that resulted in them having the wood floors refinished and some of the drywall replaced.
Despite the new catastrophe to hit the home, Conaway is thankful that the historic home is still standing. She said, “This is why I love Forney. People watch out for each other. If it had not been for our neighbors, our house would be gone. We really were very blessed, it could have been much worse."
All photos taken by Sherri Thornhill.
