Alabama State Fire Marshal Scott Pilgreen’s office has taken over the investigation of a “suspicious” Wednesday, Aug. 20, fire that destroyed a mobile home in the Nokomis community.
The first emergency units were sent to the fire site around 11:34 a.m. Firefighters from Nokomis, Atmore and Perdido fought the blaze, mainly in an effort to keep it from spreading to adjoining properties, but the flames — which appear to have started near the center of the trailer — quickly consumed the FEMA trailer.
“Black smoke was coming from it, and it had burned through the roof when I got there,” said Nokomis Volunteer Fire Dept. Capt. Jerry Gehman, the first firefighter to arrive. “Naturally, I asked for mutual aid from Atmore (Fire Department) and Perdido (Volunteer Fire Department).”
The suspicious nature led to a call for Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputies, who were sent to the Johnson Road fire scene to provide protection for the firefighters, who were at first told there was someone inside the burning structure.
“Witnesses said the trailer, which had no electricity, was ‘possibly occupied,’ so we called out and got no response because there was nobody there,” the volunteer captain said.
AFD Chief Ron Peebles said a fire-suppression unit and three-man crew were dispatched to the site to help quell the blaze.
“They played an active role,” Peebles said. “They jumped in and fought the fire.”
The flames were brought under control in quick time, and local firefighters agreed there were several aspects of the fire that didn’t seem to fit, so the decision was made to call in state fire investigators.
“We all poured water on it, and it was put out in just a few minutes,” said Gehman, who expressed appreciation for the two fire departments that were part of the incident. He also noted that NVFD Chief Tommy Pickering left work in Flomaton and responded to the scene.
“It’s hard to get a lot of volunteers during the day, since most of them have jobs,” he said. “We really appreciate the mutual-aid help we got.”
Photos courtesy NVFD. Flames quickly swept through the mobile home.
