Attic fire damages Flat Rock house

From the Times-News:

Contractors remodeling a home at 68 Mountain Close Lane, near Highland Lake Inn & Resort, were putting up new drywall in the otherwise vacant home when they smelled smoke Tuesday afternoon.

Michael McCarthy said they had started a small fire in the home’s fireplace to keep the chill out while they worked in the house.

“They didn’t know it… but somebody had roofed over the chimney,” said Blue Ridge Fire & Rescue Chief Gary Brown.

The smoke and intense heat from the fireplace backed up in the house’s attic, sparking a fire shortly before 2 p.m. McCarthy called 911.

Heavy smoke was escaping from the eaves of the house when firefighters arrived. “There was a good-size fire in the attic,” Brown said.

Firefighters cut a hole in the roof to access the fire in the attic when they noticed it had spread, but were relieved to find the flames had not sizzled through to the lower floors. . .Water was pumped up from Highland Lake to extinguish the flames.

Water was pumped up from Highland Lake to extinguish the flames. . .

Read it all. And here's the location: