3:00 PM Update: According to Fire Marshal Buddy Preston, the origin of the fire was at a dog house in the back of the house. It appeared there a heat lamp had been set up in the dog house which may have come in contact with the dog house or the contents in it, igniting a fire. The wind at the time of the fire was blowing directly toward the home, causing the fire to spread into the back area of the home, Preston said. Preston stated that the family’s second dog still had not been found at this time. The Red Cross is helping meet the family’s immediate needs.
The homeowners are identified as Joe and Becky Alcorta, who gave Preston permission to release their names and information to the media. Joe works at Kohler and Becky works at Brownwood Regional Medical Center. They have three children: A son Nicholas, 18, who is a senior; son Christian, 16; and daughter Danielle, who is 9. All three are students of Early ISD.
Original Story: Brown County first responders were called to a house fire in the 2500 block of County Road 347, just outside of Early Wednesday morning.
A neighbor called in the fire at approximately 10:30 a.m. when he saw flames coming out of the back room of the house. Early Volunteer Fire Department arrived quickly and began extinguishing the fire, which caused the back portion of the roof to collapse. Flames appeared to have spread through the entire attic area of the house, causing heavy smoke damage throughout the home.
None of the residents of the property were home at the time of the fire; however, one of the family’s house dogs perished in the flames. Early Volunteer firefighters attempted to revive the dog with oxygen but were unable to save it. Another house dog had not been located at the time of the fire.
A Brown County Sheriff’s deputy kept a small Chihuahua warm in his jacket as other first responders searched for the missing dog.
The cause of the fire is currently under investigation. The home was a total loss according to Fire Marshal Buddy Preston who also reported that the family had no homeowner’s insurance.
Brownwood Fire Department assisted EVFD. Brown County Sheriff’s Office and Allegiance Ambulance Service also responded to the scene.
Pictured above and below are photos of the fire.
FFirefighters attempt to revive a small dog that perished in the fire.
