Fire at vacant home is called suspicious

HAMILTON - Flames erupted yesterday in a carport attached to a house that is unoccupied and for sale, officials said.

The blaze on Endicott Road at Route 33 started among trash, bags of clothing and other items apparently left in the partly enclosed carport when the owners moved a few months ago, Nottingham Fire Co. Chief Gary Dempster said.

The cause is suspicious and under investigation by police and Mercer County Fire Marshal George Lenhardt, he said.

Firefighters, alerted at 5:24 p.m., saw a small fire and dense, dark smoke in the carport when they arrived. But within a minute, the entire carport was engulfed in flames as it finally got so hot that everything inside suddenly ignited, Dempster said.

Nottingham, Washington Township, Mercerville, Colonial and Enterprise firefighters had the fire controlled by 5:38 p.m.

The carport was heavily damaged and the two-story home suffered smoke damage and minor fire damage, Dempster said.

There were no injuries. Both sides of Route 33 were closed for an hour because firefighters had to lay a hoseline across the highway to reach a fire hydrant.