By Esteban Fernandez, Times West Virginian
EAST SIDE— Tim Heldreth bought a golf cart early Monday morning.
Ten minutes after Heldreth brought it home to his house on Merchant Street, the golf cart caught fire.
“We were sitting on the porch, and I told my husband there was smoke over there,” Anita Stevens, Heldreth’s neighbor, said. “It’s the side by side, and my husband went over there and came back with a chain, but by the time he was ready to move it away from the house, it engulfed in flames. And then it caught up the house.”
After the fire had been put out, a man connected to Heldreth walked out holding a damp cardboard box. Inside was a collection of family photos, one of the few things left surviving after the fire burned through the house. Heldreth himself spoke to his insurance company, and explained how his home had just been destroyed by a fire. No one was harmed by the fire. Shawn Stevens, Anita’s husband, rescued Heldreth’s dog from the fire after putting himself at risk.
Valley Volunteer Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Zac Eakle said the investigation into the cause of the fire was ongoing. Shawn Stevens said he saw the cart’s battery explode.
