Joyce Rose [Brian Rose’s Mother] was home alone in the couples house at 696 Rivergreen Lane when the houses smoke detectors began going off. Upon investigation, she noticed smoke pouring out of the attic and called 911. It took about 30 minutes for firefighters to reach the house, by which time her home was fully engulfed in flames, Joyce Rose said. After calling the fire department, Joyce Rose was able to save some small personal items from the house and the cars from the attached garage before the fire got too far out of control, she said. The fire was still smoldering Saturday evening as the sun went down. Wilkinson estimated that it would take several more hours for it to completely die out. The blaze apparently began in the attics and crawlspaces of the house and spread quickly. The 6,500-square-foot home and its contents were valued at between $1.9 million and $2.4 million. It was virtually a total loss. The Roses were insured and an adjuster had already been to the scene, along with a Kentucky State Police fire marshall, he said. The Roses son, Brian, is a race car driver on the NASCAR circuit, and had just moved all his driving suits and other equipment to his parents house last week. David Rose was working at the time of the fire, but his wife called him after calling 911 and he arrived about the same time as the firefighters got to the scene. The hydrant nearest the house didnt work at all, and firefighters ultimately had to draw most of the water used to fight the fire from the nearby lake, David Rose said. They fooled with that (hydrant) for 30 minutes while my house burned down, he said. We seem to have a pressure problem out here. Another neighbor, Kirby Loid, said a similar fire destroyed a house being built for Jim Scott, another area resident, a few years ago before firefighters could stop it. Theres just no pressure out here at all, Loid said. When these things start, its hard to stop them. The Roses home is located in Rivergreen, a gated community off Cemetery Road, and when the subdivision was developed, the developer installed a 4-inch water line to feed the houses and fire hydrants in the community, Wilkinson said. The fire department uses 5-inch supply hoses to connect to hydrants and fight fires, he said. (see full story at Bowling Green Daily News)(9-9-2002)
