Fire guts mobile home in Woodbine Monday

Woodbine and Oak Grove firefighters spent almost two hours Monday battling a blaze that gutted a mobile home off of Colonel Ridge Road.

Firefighters were called to the scene on Gray Owl Road just east of the Whitley/Knox County line at approximately 1:05 p.m. where a mobile home, which had been added onto, was engulfed in flames.

“The right front side was on fire outside and inside,” said Woodbine Fire Chief Rick Fore when asked what firefighters saw when they arrived on the scene.

Joy Smith, the homeowner, stood by and watched as firefighters worked to extinguish the flames.

Smith said she was out in the shed looking for some items when she noticed the smoke and looked out to find the source and learned it was her home.

“I have no clue what it could be,” Smith said explaining that the area where she saw the flames contained a bedroom along with the hallway, bathroom and laundry area.

“It has been paid for two years,” Smith said adding that she had been unable to get insurance because companies refused to insure a mobile home that wasn’t on a foundation and was such an older model.

Firefighters used two hose lines to attack the fire from both ends, knocking down the flames in 20 to 25 minutes.

“We were able to save one room that had some guns and other mementos,” Fore said. “When we left, the homeowners said they were going to see if they could salvage anything else.”

Fore said firefighters contacted the American Red Cross to provide assistance to Smith and her family.

Fore said the cause of the fire remains under investigation. However, there is nothing to indicate arson.