1982 — May 15, Row House Fire (3 adults, 7 children), Baltimore, Maryland — 10
— 10 Baltimore Sun. “Fatal fires.” 5-23-2007.
— 10 National Fire Protection Program. The 1984 Fire Almanac. 1983, p. 138.
— 10 NFPA. The U.S. Fire Problem. “Home Fires with Ten or More Fatalities (1980-2007)
Narrative Information
May 15: “Baltimore (AP) — An early morning fire which swept through a row house[1] claimed the lives of 10 people and injured three others, authorities said. The dead ranged in age from 7 months to 40 years. Three were adults and seven children, said fire department spokesman Capt. Patrick Flynn. The blaze broke out at 12:30 a.m. in the city’s northeastern section and was declared under control one hour later, said fire Chief Francis Ticha. An adjoining home suffered smoke damage, but officials said the dead were residents of the home in which the fire started….
“The fire — the most deadly row house fire in the city in at least 30 years — may have been ignited when a kerosene lamp tipped over, Flynn said. The family’s electricity had been shut off at 11 a.m. Friday because of nonpayment of bills, Flynn said. But Doris McGriff, a resident of the home occupied by the family of James Williams, 40, said the lamp had been extinguished hours before the fire, but two candles had been burning when the fire broke out.
“The Williams, according to neighbors, lived there with their five children, a niece and nephew, the niece’s three children and an adult friend. Ms. McGriff said she was sitting on a porch when the fire broke out. Her three children were among those sleeping inside, she said. ‘I heard my baby, Mia, crying,’ Ms. McGriff said. ‘I went inside and saw she was on fire. I was trying to get to her but the fire had already got her.’
“Flynn said Mia McGriff was the youngest victim to perish in the blaze. The others included Mia’s 3-year-old brother Lewis and 5-year-old sister Anthfya; Williams; his wife Delores, 38; three of their children — Anita, 12, Theresa 11, and Michelle, 5; James Brown, 28 and his brother Antonio, 7. The Browns were nephews of Mrs. Williams and the Browns her cousins, Flynn said. Two others escaped from the house, according to…a neighbor…She said Melvin Williams and Bernard Ethridge climbed to the rear second-floor roof of the blazing structure and helped two people to escape…” (Associated Press. “Baltimore Row House Fire Fatal to Ten.” Cumberland Evening Times, MD. 5-15-1982, p. 1.)
2007, Baltimore Sun: “May 15, 1982 Ten people died in a two-alarm rowhouse blaze at 2781 Tivoly Ave., near Clifton Park. A candle that toppled over and ignited a sofa was listed as the cause of the fire, which officials said at the time was the deadliest in more than 35 years. Electrical power had been cut off a day earlier for nonpayment of an $808 BGE bill.” (Baltimore Sun. “Fatal fires.” 5-23-2007.)
Sources
Associated Press. “Baltimore Row House Fire Fatal to Ten.” Cumberland Evening Times, MD. 5-15-1982, p. 1. Accessed 5-15-2017 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/cumberland-evening-times-may-15-1982-p-1/?tag
Baltimore Sun. “Fatal fires.” 5-23-2007. Accessed 5-27-2016 at: http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2007-05-23/news/0705230028_1_baltimore-rowhouse-rowhouse-fire-baltimore-fire
National Fire Protection Association. The 1984 Fire Almanac. Quincy, MA: NFPA, 1983.
National Fire Protection Association. The U.S. Fire Problem. “Home Fires with Ten or More Fatalities (1980-2007).” Quincy, MA: NFPA, April 2008 update. Accessed at: http://www.nfpa.org:80/itemDetail.asp?categoryID=953&itemID=30981&URL=Research%20&%20Reports/Fire%20statistics/The%20U.S.%20fire%20problem
[1] Notes elsewhere that the row house of a two-story brick building.