Overloaded Extension Cord Ignites Blaze, Destroys Home

The freezer was full of turkeys and there were presents under the Christmas tree. But none of that was recognizable at the Nicholson household in Brookland after a fire destroyed the two-story structure and nearly all of its contents early yesterday.

"We lost everything," said Craig Nicholson as he sifted through the rubble.

His wife and five children all escaped but the family's three cats died in the fire.

The blaze, which a fire department official said was ignited by an overloaded extension cord, started before 5 a.m. while the family was sleeping.

Nicholson said he awoke to find his bedroom on fire. He initially tried to put it out, but had no success and hustled his family outside to safety. When firefighters arrived a short time later, the whole house was engulfed in flames. Several family members were treated at local hospitals for minor burns and smoke inhalation.

"Firefighters went in right away," said Alan Etter, spokesman for the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services department. Because the family had already escaped, however, he said firefighters retreated and fought the fire from outside.

What remained was mostly a burned-out shell. Fire officials estimated the damage at $400,000.

Nicholson's wife looked on as her husband carted out shoe boxes from the basement that did not burn but were soaked by water. She said he should just leave it alone, but he went back in anyway, looking for anything he could salvage.

"Some things are irreplaceable," he said. "You have no words for it."

Red Cross volunteers arrived yesterday to provide the family with financial assistance to buy clothes and rent a hotel room for a couple of days. Betsy Sprouse, of the D.C. chapter, said it responds to 20 to 30 incidents each month, including fires and power outages.

"We give them a debit card to tide them through," she said.

Etter said that families should make sure that their smoke alarm is working properly and that all extension cords have the Underwriters Laboratories stamp. "You have to make sure you use an extension cord that is designed for the specific use you're using it for," he said.