SHARON — A family of five was displaced by a kitchen fire early Friday in the Sharon home they recently moved into.
Sharon fire Chief Terry Whalen said firefighters were called at 1:43 a.m. to a fire at 700 McClure Ave.
The fire was an accident that started on the stove, Whalen said.
The home is owned by Sts. Peter and Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, Whalen said, and Damian and Crystal Bowser lived there with three children ages 3, 16 months and one month.
Whalen said the family was “very fortunate” that the mother woke up and smelled smoke.
“They got out just with the clothes on their backs,” Whalen said. “They didn’t even have shoes on.”
The church has insurance on the building but the couple does not have rental insurance, Whalen said. They moved into the home less than two weeks ago, he said.
That no one was hurt is a “miracle,” the Rev. Jeffrey Harter said.
Harter said the church is not sure if it will repair the home, which is gutted.
Harter said the congregation has come through with donations and clothing and the church refunded the Bowsers’ rent for the month.
The church will collect “any kind of donations” for the family at 699 Stambaugh Ave., and there will be a basket set up at a fun night at 6 p.m. Sunday at the church, Harter said. That event is free to the public.
In addition to help from the church, Whalen said the Mercer County chapter of the American Red Cross offered assistance to the family, who are now staying with relatives. The fire department also gave them blankets and a gift card.
The fire was in the kitchen, but there was heavy smoke and heat damage throughout the home, Whalen said.
Firefighters got to the blaze within three minutes and it was out within 15 minutes, Whalen said.
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UPDATE: Fire chases family from new home
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Shenango Twp. man was hurt in Sunday crash
The driver of the car involved in a crash Sunday evening on Lamor Road at Mount Washington Cemetery in Jefferson Township, is in the intensive care unit of St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown, with serious injuries, Jefferson Township police Chief Jeff Lockard said.
Thomas Zajac III, 23, Mitchell Road, Shenango Township, was westbound on Lamor Road when he lost control of the sports car he was driving and it hit a tree in the cemetery.
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Chase suspect returned to city to face charges
An Ohio man that Hermitage police allege led several departments on a July 22 chase throughout the Shenango Valley has been returned to Pennsylvania.
John W. Bishop, 48, of Struthers, was taken to Mercer County Jail and will face a preliminary hearing at 2:45 p.m. Tuesday before District Judge Ronald E. Antos, Farrell.
Bishop was charged with 21 counts including reckless endangerment, retail theft and a host of traffic violations.
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Police: Shooter jailed
An argument escalated to a shooting Tuesday morning in Sandy Creek Township, leaving a Sandy Lake area man with life-threatening injuries.
Cody Brandon Noel, 24, was flown to a UPMC hospital in Pittsburgh, state police said. It was unclear Tuesday night which hospital or his condition, but police called his injuries “life-threatening.”
Police said Noel was shot by a neighbor, Michael Allen Kellner, 48, at about 9:30 a.m. near Hastee’s, a gas station and convenience store along U.S. Route 19. Kellner was in Mercer County Jail Tuesday night after failing to post $100,000 bond on an aggravated assault charge, police said.
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Woman dies of injuries in last week’s crash
A Greenville woman hurt in Thursday’s two-vehicle crash in Pymatuning Township has died from her injuries.
Lois E. Orr, 93, of 117 East Ave., died at 6:26 p.m. Saturday in St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown, according to incomplete obituary information. -
Faith doused fire; forge is new creation
Firefighters were battling one of the biggest blazes ever in Grove City when Will Knecht arrived in time to see his family owned, 87-year-old business crumbling and tumbling to the ground.
Knecht, the company’s president, formed a circle with his teary-eyed employees at Wendell August Forge and prayed as plumes of smoke visible for miles drew hundreds of onlookers.
“It was like it was a spectator sport almost, but with people in tears, people moved by it,” Knecht said. “We had employees saying, ‘Will, what are we gonna do, what are we gonna do?’ I prayed from the bottom of my heart, ‘Lord, you know what’s going on, we don’t; we trust you, you take it from here.’ ”
Six months after the March 6 fire, Knecht said those prayers have been answered as his community, employees and customers — including the Pittsburgh Penguins pro hockey team — rallied to re-energize the business.
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Buhl Day may have changed over the years, from the type of food served to the entertainment featured, but its true intent remains intact, planning committee members said at Monday’s opening ceremonies.
The 31st annual event at Buhl Farm park, Hermitage, serves as the Shenango Valley’s “last hurrah” of the summer to pay tribute to philanthropist Frank H. Buhl and his wife Julia Forker Buhl, said Sue McLaughlin, one of five committee co-chairs.
Buhl Farm trustee Phil Marrie invited park-goers to check out Buhl Farm’s biggest upgrades completed this year.
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Bradley James Cleveland, 306 1/2 Liberty St., may have fled the area, police said.
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“I like Greenville a lot. It’s a great place,” he said Friday afternoon in his office at the borough building, taking a break from working on the 2011 budget.
Council members hired Andrejchak to replace Ryan Eggleston, who resigned in November to work as city manager of Oil City.
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Day dedicated to workers
Here’s to the workingman.
They’re the ones who once put Mercer County on the map as one of the places where steel, pipe and tube, ladders, railcars and a variety of other products were made by proud men and women who put in an honest day’s work.
Today isn’t supposed to be a holiday of picnics and end-of-summer celebrations. -
League sets debate date; Dahlkemper ad questioned
Local political junkies, mark your calendars.
Third District Congressional rivals Kathy Dahlkemper and Mike Kelly will face off at a League of Woman Voters of Mercer County forum from 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 26 at the Sharon City Building.
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Shenango Twp. man was hurt in Sunday crash
