Firefighters say the strong, gusty winds feeding the fire making it that much difficult to put it out. Only a shell of the home remains.
Flames broke out about 9:20am Sunday. The owner of the house said he was washing dishes when he heard the smoke detector go off.
Ronald Avera went into a back room, saw the flames and he says he used a bed comforter to try to put it out. But it was too little too late.
Avera yelled for his wife to get out of the house, and luckily they both got out in time. The couple had been living in the home for the last 46 years. They say they made many great memories there and despite losing it all, they still manage to have a great perspective on all that's happened and all that's been lost.
"It's just stuff," said Avera. "We've been thinning it out, giving it to the kids over the years or the last six or seven months anyway, so this just hurried up the process."
Firefighters believe a cigarette may have started the blaze. The homeowner was sent to a nearby hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation and is expected to be OK.
