A Mt. Vernon home was heavily damaged by fire Friday morning.
Mt. Vernon city firefighters say no one was at home at the residence in the 1200 block of Harlan Road when the fire was discovered around 9:21 am.
Fire officials say the fire started in the garage end of the home and spread to the center of the single-story structure that also had a basement. The cause of the fire has not been determined. The State Fire Marshal’s office has been called in to investigate.
Firemen say the owner of the home is currently in the hospital and a son who sometimes stays at the home was not there Thursday night or Friday.
While one side of the home did not suffer fire damage, the entire residence sustained heavy heat damage. Firemen say some items inside the home might be salvaged.
Mt. Vernon Firemen say the Harland Road area is near the edge of town and didn’t have adequate water pressure to support the firefighting effort. As a result, a shuttle system was set up to bring water to the scene.
Jefferson Fire Protection District, Weber Township, Woodlawn and Kell Firemen all provided mutual aid at the scene, while Centralia City and Waltonville Firemen provided station coverage in the event of another fire in Mt. Vernon.
Firemen were on the scene for about two and a half hours.
