Dryer Fire Articles (2008)

ABITA SPRINGS, LA - An Abita Springs-area family is homeless after a clothes dryer sparked a fire at their home.  Investigators believe the fire started in a clothes dryer and spread to the rest of the home.  "I had no idea a fire could start in a dryer but it did and it took everything we owned," Kelly said. "It's devastating."  The laundry room shares a wall with the bunkbeds where Kelly's children, Matthew, 10, and Mark, 2, sleep, and Kelly said she was thankful the blaze hadn't happened while the family was at home asleep.  By the time the fire was out, the heat had warped and scorched the metal building, Junek said.

BISMARK, ND - Police say an early morning fire at a Bismarck church has left a family of six homeless.  Police Sgt. Dwight Offerman said the family had been living in the Bible Baptist Church for about a week.  The fire was reported at 2:34 a.m., and it appears to have started in the dryer.  Officers have estimated about $100,000 in damage from fire and smoke.

PORT HURON, MI - Holding her Chihuahua, Kiki, in her lap, Kim Senart watched Monday as her home burned to the ground.  Port Huron firefighters responded to a blaze that started in a crawl space, caused by lint built up in a dryer vent. Port Huron Fire Capt. Mark White said a plastic vent covering -- newer ones are metal -- furthered the problem.  "Everything's gone.  We lost everything," Senart said Monday outside her home.  Senart was doing laundry when she noticed the fire.

KANSAS CITY, MO - A fire that appeared to have started in a clothes dryer sent a woman and toddler to the hospital Saturday night with serious injuries.  The fire broke out about 7 p.m. in a split-level home in the Northeast area of Kansas City.  Authorities said the woman and child were unresponsive but had pulses when firefighters pulled them from the home, which was filling with smoke as rescuers arrived. Fire Department spokesman Joe Vitale said investigators thought the blaze started in a dryer in the laundry room below the living area.  He said a buildup of lint could be to blame.

OSAGE BEACH, MO - About $4,000 in damages were sustained when lint from a dryer in the laundry room at the hotel caught fire.  It took about 10 minutes for members of the Osage Beach Fire Protection District to put out the fire.  When firefighters arrived, light smoke was showing from the main entrance of the building.  The district reminds people to check the vent for lint build up and clean them regularly.

HILLSBORO, OR - Four children and their two pet ferrets are safe after a clothes dryer sparked a fire in their home.  A pet bird did not survive, according to Hillsboro Fire & Rescue.  Firefighters arrived at the home shortly after 11 a.m. to find heavy smoke pouring from the eaves of the single-story home.  Flames from the dryer spread into the attic, according to the fire department.  Damage is estimated at $125,000.  The family of seven is staying with relatives.

BUCHANAN, VA - The Salvation Army is helping a man and his two young sons after fire destroyed their home in Buchanan Sunday night. Investigators say the fire was caused by lint build-up in the dryer.  No one was injured in the fire.  It took firefighters about three hours to get a handle on the fire.  Damages are estimated at $130,000, including belongings inside the home.

FORT COLLINS, CO - Poudre Fire Authority firefighters extinguished a dryer fire in the laundry room of a south Fort Collins home last night. Firefighters said the fire was contained to the room, but smoke damaged other parts of the house, displacing the residents.  When the first engine arrived on scene they found smoke emitting from the front door of the split-level, single-family, wood frame residence.  Crews en-tered the residence and made an aggressive attack, stopping the fire within the laundry room.  Most fire and heat damage was contained around this area; how-ever there was smoke damage throughout the residence.  The family was displaced last night and it is unknown how much longer they will be out of their residence.

ORLAND PARK, IL - A fire broke out at 15731 S. 113th Ave. after a dryer in the laundry room caught fire, Figel said.  Firefighters responded to the call around 9 a.m. and evacuated four pre-school aged children and one adult from the residence before extinguishing the fire.  Orland Park Fire District officials are warning residents to clean lint traps in clothing dryers regularly and vacuum behind them.

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE, UK - A tumble dryer caught fire at the national treasure's Buckinghamshire property.  It took two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus nearly two hours to contain the utility room blaze.  Sir Terry told his Radio 2 audience he was saved by daughter Katherine hearing the smoke alarm.  The BBCstar lives at the £2m riverside property in Taplow with wife Lady Helen.  The 70-year-old thanked the firefighters on air, telling them: "Well done fellas - you saved an old gentleman from singed eyebrows."

EDDY, TX - Milam County officials called in the State Fire Marshal's office to investigate a mobile home fire in Cameron where a woman's body was found inside.  Officials say the home was completely engulfed in flames when they arrived.  "We were not going to put any water on the fire since the house was down on the ground.  There was a small grassfire across the road, we were concentrating on putting that out and then we were told someone might be inside, so we tried to put some water on the fire to locate the victim," says Henry Horelica, Cameron Fire Chief.  Officials say it appears a clothes dryer started the fire.

OAKLAND PARK, IL - Firefighters responded to a fire reported in a single-story brick home in the 15700 block of South 113th Avenue.  When firefighters arrived shortly after 9 a.m., they determined the fire started in a dryer in the home's laundry room.  A build up of lint caused the fire, officials said.  Smoke damage was reported throughout the home.

CANYONVILLE, OR - Clouds of gray smoke folded into a sky of the same color Thursday afternoon as a fire gutted a house about five miles east of Canyonville on Tiller Trail Highway.  Canyonville South Umpqua Fire Captain Paul Ritter said his truck was the third vehicle to arrive at the home at around 2:45 p.m.  “There were flames coming out of every window,” said Ritter.  Canyonville South Umpqua Lt. Rick Richardson said the cause of the fire was a dryer.  Richardson said the fire was under control within an hour.  He could not provide a damage estimate, but said from what he heard it was a loss.

URBANA, IL - Lint trapped in a dryer vent caused a fire in the basement of an Urbana home.  Urbana Fire Division Chief Tony Foster said firefighters were called to the home at 6:37 p.m.  Neighbors next door had noticed flames in the basement and could see smoke coming from the windows before Gilmar's smoke detector alerted her, her daughter, and son-in-law that there was a problem.  Foster said the son-in-law found the dryer on fire and tried to put it out with a chemical extinguisher but was unable to get it totally out.  "There was excessive lint in the bottom of the dryer.  The vent is the connection that runs from the back of the dryer to the outside of the house, not the lint trap found inside the dryer drum.  In Gilmar's case, the vent was plastic.  "It caught on fire in the vent itself.  The bottom side of that (vent), closest to the machine, caught on fire.  The lint was all trapped right there," he said.

MANKATO, MN - Firefighters were called to a report of a fire at the Highland Hills apartment building at 175 Balcerzak in Mankato just before 11 this morning.  The Mankato Fire Department says the fire started in a downstairs clothes dryer.  The fire was extinguished before it reached other areas of the apartment building.  The building was evacuated and there were no injuries.

MILLVILLE, NJ - A fire sparked by a clothes dryer Monday morning displaced a city family.  The fire broke out in the basement at 421 Peach Drive around 9 a.m. Millville Fire Department personnel cleared the scene at 11:10 a.m.  The fire has been ruled accidental.  The blaze left fire damage in the basement, including a hole in the wall, and smoke damage throughout the house.

FORT PIERCE, FL - A Saturday night fire damaged a condominium unit’s laundry room on the 2400 block of Ocean Drive, a St. Lucie County Fire District spokeswoman said.  Emergency officials were called to the blaze at about 8 p.m.  Arriving crews saw smoke and flames in a unit’s laundry room, Fire District spokeswoman Catherine Chaney said.  The fire on the fifth floor of the condominium was contained after emergency officials arrived.  The cause of the fire was a dryer.

ELMIRA, NY - An Elmira Heights family got a Thanksgiving scare after flames broke out at their home.  Firefighters said a dryer caught on fire at 255 east 18th Street in the Heights.  It happened around two Thursday afternoon.  Fire officials were able to contain the blaze to the basement, where there is minor damage.  Fortunately, no one was injured.

MATTESON, IL - A fire that started in a clothes dryer caused extensive damage to a Matteson home today.  The Matteson Fire Department received a call at 11:34 a.m. for a dryer fire at 116 W. Willow Road, Fire Chief Nick Wilkens said.  The fire was out before 12:50, he said, though crews were still checking the house at that time.  No one was hurt and no surrounding buildings were damaged, Wilkens said. But the two story home suffered "extensive damage," he said.  The blaze displaced is a family of seven, including Lisa Johnson, her husband and five children.

TOLEDO, OH - A Monroe Township family was forced from its home Sunday morning by a two-alarm fire.  Dean Sokol and his family escaped from the two-story home and were not injured by the blaze.  The family, which includes Mr. Sokol’s wife and at least one child, was staying with relatives this afternoon.  The fire originated in a dryer in the couple’s first-floor laundry room, Chief Merkle said.  "The dryer caught fire and set clothes on fire that were near the dryer," Chief Merkle said.  "The fire was confined to the laundry room, but there was smoke damage throughout the house."

SPRINGFIELD, MO - Firefighters in Springfield say it was an improperly vented clothes dryer that caused damage to a home on Broadway just north of Grand.  A battalion chief says everyone in the got out okay.  Damage was limited to an area of the basement where the dryer was located.  The Red Cross was called in to help five adults who lived in the house.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Around 7:00p.m the Tallahassee fire department responded to a call to White Hall Apartments on West Call Street.  The fire appeared to be accidental, possibly caused by a dryer.  The fire spread though one unit and in the attic area causing near $60,000 in damages.  No injuries have been reported.

MONROE CITY, MO - Collections of clothing and furniture are being taken up for a Monroe City mother and her three children following a house fire on Sunday night.  Monroe City Fire Department, assisted by Paris Fire Department and Monroe City Police, responded to a dryer fire at the rental residence on Main Street. Damage was contained to two rooms.  The family is staying at the home of a neighbor temporarily.

LINCOLNTON, NC - A fire that started in a dryer sent three residents to the hospital on Tuesday night.  The fire also caused 55 residents in the facility to be evacuated.  One of the patients transported to CMC-Lincoln had potentially life threatening injuries.  The fire occurred around 8 p.m. on Tuesday night and firefighters allowed the return of the residents into the building about an hour later.  Boger City and Lincolnton Fire Departments responded to the fire.

MANTECA, CA - A clothes dryer caused a $75,000 house fire that left one woman with smoke inhalation.  Manteca Fire was dispatched Monday at 7:25 p.m. to a triplex at 715 S. Main St.  The first firefighters on the scene found smoke and flames coming from the rear of the third unit of the triplex.  There was a fully involved garage, kitchen, and attic fire.  It took 30 minutes to bring the fire under control and 40 minutes for complete extinguishment.  The majority of the fire damage was done to the garage and kitchen.  There was smoke and heat damage throughout the residence.

FORT PAYNE, AL - Two people were injured in a fire Wednesday at Collinsville Nursing Home.  Acting Collinsville Fire Chief Jimmy Lykes said the fire started about 3 p.m. in the laundry room of the nursing home.  “Apparently some lint in the dryer caught fire,” said Lykes. “We were able to contain the fire to the dryer.”  Two employees at the home were taken to DeKalb Regional Medical Center to be treated for injuries related to the fire.

JERSEY CITY, NJ - Jersey City firefighters made quick work of a fire that started in a clothes dryer in a Greenville public laundry Monday night, officials said.  Firefighters responding to the alarm to BJ Laundromat found heavy smoke coming from the dryer and rising into the upstairs apartments of the two-story building, said Fire Director Armando Roman.  The flames were under control in nine minutes and fire damage was contained to the area around the dryer and the dryer itself, which was destroyed, Roman said.

GRIFFITH, IN - A dryer vent fire quickly spread and caused heavy damage to a home at 746 N. Cline Ave.  Police and firefighters were called at 2:54 p.m. Saturday to a home where a man said he had put clothes in his ex-wife's dryer and fell asleep.  Someone pounding on the back door awoke him.  The man said the fire quickly grew after he saw the exhaust tube was melted and a small fire had started on the back of the home.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA - A woman suffered smoke inhalation in a garage fire reported at 7:21 p.m. Monday in the 6200 block of Argyle Avenue in San Bernardino, a San Bernardino City fire engineer said.  A faulty clothing dryer caused the fire, creating $10,000 worth of damage to the structure and contents, Engineer Tom Rubio said.  The fire was extinguished at 8:35 p.m. by 19 firefighters, Rubio said.

MANSFIELD, OH - Jennifer Ritchey left home Monday morning to bring her 74-year-old mother home from a nursing facility.  By the time she returned, the house was in flames.  Mansfield firefighters extinguished the blaze, which caused damage to the upstairs and the north side of the two-story home.  The cause of the fire was a clothes dryer on the main floor, Assistant Chief Jim Bishop.  Ritchey said her mother, who has cancer, was set to come home Monday from Oak Grove Manor.  The mother and daughter live at the house.  Ritchey said she had just washed and dried a load of her mother’s clothes and threw a few more items in the dryer before heading to the nursing facility.

BRIDGEWATER, NJ - A family of five was displaced from their condominium Monday after the home sustained damage because of a dryer fire, officials said.  North Branch fire Chief Michael Russoniello said the condo, which has a second-floor entrance, was heavily damaged by smoke.  No other units in the Stratton Meadows development were affected by smoke or water damage, he said.  The owner, who did not give her name before she was escorted inside the home by officials, said she noticed smoke was coming from her dryer.  When she opened the dryer door, a puff of smoke billowed out, prompting her to grab her 2-year-old daughter, run outside and call 911.

GRIFFITH, IN - A Saturday afternoon fire gutted a home but no one was injured.  Griffith Fire Chief George Thiel said the department was working on the scene for a couple of hours.  "When we got here it was really going, fully engulfed," he said.  It was a challenging fire because it had spread into the attic and ceiling, Thiel said.  The fire appears to have started in a clothes dryer and then ignited the gas connection, Thiel said.

TRAVERSE CITY, MI - Part of the Park Place Hotel downtown was evacuated after a fire ignited in a clothes dryer.  The fire occurred at about 11:20 a.m. Friday, Traverse City Fire Chief Jim Tuller said.  It was contained to the dryer in the basement laundry room, but created enough smoke to cause evacuation of the basement, conference room, first floor and Minerva's Restaurant & Bar, Tuller said.

WEYMOUTH, MA - The Super 8 Motel on Washington Street was evacuated on Thursday because of a laundry room fire.  Firefighters responded to reports of heavy smoke at about 1:20 p.m. and found that a fire had started in an clothes dryer, Deputy Fire Chief John Haslam said.  Ken Smith, a manager at the motel, said he and a maintenance man tried to fight the fire before the fire department arrived.  “The maintenance man went in a couple of times with the extinguisher.  The smoke was just so heavy he had to come back out,” Smith said. “I went in and there was just too much smoke, and it was too hot.”  Smith said the affected section of the motel would remain closed until insurers had fully assessed the smoke and water damage, which was described as moderate.

FROSTPROOF, FL - A fire forced a family of five in Frostproof from their home Monday night.  The home, a single-family wood structure, received extensive damage to the back porch area and smoke and water damage to the kitchen.  No one was hurt in the fire but the family had to leave for the night.  Frostproof firefighters were called to the scene at 9:38 a.m.  The cause of the fire is believed to be a dryer, which was in use on the back porch when the blaze broke out.

LAWTON, OK - Clothes in a dryer started a house fire on Bishop Road in Southeast Lawton.  Officials say the homeowner went to sleep and left the dryer running.  The dryer then overheated and set the clothes on fire.  The fire spread to the attic before firefighters could put it out.  Officials say the house did not have smoke detectors and the dog alerted the owner to the fire.  The house has major smoke damage.

SEATTLE, WA - Firefighters put out a fire that flared up for the second time early Monday morning in a South Seattle home.  The fire started in a dryer in the home on South Leo Street Sunday.  Firefighters went to the scene again just before 2 a.m. Monday.  No one was hurt.  The Red Cross is helping the family who lives in the house.

BLACK ROCK, AR - Firefighters put out flames that threatened a home and family early this morning, but the family was still put out in the cold.  On-scene reports suggest the mother woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom when she saw the fire.  We're told she then woke her husband and 2 kids up and got them out of the home.  Firefighters reported seeing flames shooting out of the windows on the bottom floor upon arrival.  It took them about 30 minutes to get the fire under control.  The home was not a total loss but the family will be staying with relatives until repairs are complete.  Fire officials believe the fire started in the dryer and quickly spread throughout the home.

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, PA - A late morning fire in Huntingdon County destroys a house and leaves a family of four homeless.  A neighbor noticed the smoke and reported the fire.   He called the Emergency Dispatch Center and then went to the home to make sure no one was inside.  When responding fire fighters arrived on scene, there was little they could do to save the home.  It was reported to be fully engulfed in flames when the first fire crews arrived.  An investigation concluded that a clothes dryer was the apparent cause of the late morning blaze.  Because no one was home when the fire started, the blaze was able to spread throughout the house causing it to be a total loss.

LAS VEGAS, NV - A 60-year-old woman has lost her home during an overnight blaze, firefighters said.  Just before 10:30 p.m. Sunday, crews responded to the emergency call at the Jaycees Seniors Community to find a mobile home fully engulfed in flames.  The homeowner said that she was able to save one of her two dogs, and crews were able to knock down the fire quickly.  Investigators think the fire may have been started by the dryer.  The woman, who did not wish to be identified, told authorities she did not have homeowner's insurance. Neighbors said she lost her husband and daughter last year.

MYRTLE BEACH, SC - Horry Fire Rescue spent about 20 minutes Thursday putting out a fire at a home in the Forestbrook area of Myrtle Beach.  No injuries were reported in the blaze, which was caused by a dryer, said spokesman Todd Cartner with Horry County Fire Rescue.  The fire, which started about 7:15 p.m. at 4090 Longline Lane, caused moderate damage to the rear of the home.

WATFORD, ENGLAND, UK - Fire crews were called to deal with a house fire this afternoon after a tumble dryer burst into flames.  Crews from Watford and Garston stations had the blaze under control within minutes after two fire fighters entered the house with a hose real. They then spent several minutes helping to clear the house of moke.  Police officers and an ambulance were called to the scene, but nobody was injured in the fire.

WATKINS GLEN, NY - Firefighters say a clothes dryer is responsible for a fire that gutted a Schuyler County home.  When fire fighters arrived at the home on friday afternoon, the home was engulfed in flames.  All the windows and doors were busted and the fire was so intense it melted the siding.  This is one that can be prevalent if people aren't careful to clean out their dryer vents,” says Watkins Glen Fire Chief Dominick Smith.  A woman and her son lived at the home, but they were not hurt.  They did lose their family cat to the fire and almost all of their belongings.

ROANOKE, VA - Roanoke County Fire & Rescue was dispatched to the 4500 block of Vest Drive.  When fire crews arrived they found smoke showing from all sides of the house and flames coming from the basement door.  The fire was contained to the basement with moderate damage.  The rest of the home received minimal smoke damage.  The Fire Marshal’s office has completed their investigation and found that lint from the clothes dryer caught on fire igniting nearby clothing and other combustibles.  The damage estimates have been figured to be $20,000 including the house and its contents.

PORTSMOUTH, RI - Fire caused about 100 seniors and staff members of Aquidneck Place, 125 Quaker Lane, to be evacuated Tuesday afternoon.  A dryer, on the first floor of a 94-unit assisted-living building, caught fire and set off the fire alarm and sprinkler system, alerting staff and the fire department.  Fire Chief Jeffrey Lynch said, “The sprinkler head was able to control the fire” until firefighters arrived and “made an aggressive attack” that extinguished the fire.  Otherwise, “the fire would have been much worse,” Chief Lynch said.  A staff member was treated for minor burns and a resident was treated for feeling ill.

JACKSONVILLE, NC - A clothes dryer at Havelock High School caught fire Tuesday afternoon.  Anetta Davenport, spokeswoman for Craven County Schools, said that Tim Daly and Dave Garner, assistant principals at the school, put the fire out with extinguishers before firefighters arrived.  The fire started around 3:30 p.m., after classes had already dismissed for the day.  Still, Davenport said the building was evacuated of what students and staff were still in the building.  Davenport said the dryer was destroyed and part of a wall was damaged from smoke.

SANTA ROSA, CA - A fire at a Petaluma laundromat brought out city firefighters Monday night, fire officials reported.  They went to Launderland and found flames in a bank of clothes dryers, reported Battalion Chief Mike Haberski.  Rancho Adobe, Cal Fire, San Antonio and Wilmar department firefighters helped Petaluma for a total of 16 firefighters.  The fire was stopped from spreading into the building.  Fire officials determined the cause was a malfunctioning dryer.  Damage was estimated at about $13,000, Haberski said.

SOUTH BUCKINGHAMSHIRE, UK - Two residents had to be led to safety by firefighters after a fire broke out in a sheltered housing complex. Fire crews from High Wycombe and Beaconsfield were called to Nickson Court, Highfield Way, Hazlemere after a fire started in the laundry room.  A man and a woman were still in the building when rescuers arrived.  Group manager Greg Smith said: "When we arrived the building was beginning to fill with smoke.  "Two people hadn't evacuated from the first floor.  "Firefighters were able to locate them quickly and lead them to safety while other firefighters dealt with the fire."  Two men were treated for smoke inhalation.  The fire is believed to have started in a tumble dryer.

COVENTRY, ENGLAND, UK - Firefighters battled a blaze at a Leamington hair salon after a tumble dryer caught fire yesterday afternoon. The fire broke out at Toni and Guy in The Parade, shortly before 5pm.  Two fire engines and a hydrolic platform from Leamington Fire Station rushed to the scene.  Crews found a tumble dryer on the fourth floor was well alight.  They used breathing apparatus, a hose reel and covering water jets to extinguish the blaze.

SUNSET BEACH, CA - A dryer in the laundry room at a bed and breakfast in Sunset Beach caught fire this morning, causing about $22,500 in damages, fire officials said.  The fire spread from the dryer to cabinets, and smoke damaged portions of the laundry room, said Capt. Mike Blawn with the Orange County Fire Authority.  Officials reported about $15,000 in damages to the building and $7,500 to the contents.

VISTA, CA - An outside clothes dryer caught fire with five people in the house Monday night, but all escaped safely and the damage to the house was minimal, said fire Capt. Ned Vander Pol.  The fire was reported at 5:18 p.m. in the 400 block of North Melrose Drive, Vander Pol said.  The dryer, just behind the house, caught fire for unknown reasons.  Firefighters put out the fire before it spread inside, Vander Pol said.  However, the house did sustain some smoke damage, he said.

OLYMPIA, WA - Thurston County family and juvenile courts are scheduled to reopen today after the building they're in sustained smoke damage from a dryer fire.  Burning clothes and towels filled surrounding hallways with smoke.  People, including juveniles held at the detention center also in the building, evacuated.  Crews used fans to air out the buildings.  The county also hired a cleaning company to remove the smell from carpets and walls.

BREMERTON, WA - A clothes dryer started a fire in the laundry room of an attached garage in a Rocky Point home.  Fire and rescue personnel were called to the home after one of the two residents spotted the fire, according to the Bremerton Fire Department.  Fire crews from Bremerton, Jackson Park and South Kitsap Fire and Rescue arrived to put out the fire, according to Lt. John Hawkins with Bremerton Fire.  The fire took approximately 20 minutes to put out, and destroyed the laundry room, Hawkins said.  The laundry room was inside the garage, which was attached to the house.  A small corner of the house was also severely damaged, according to Hawkins.

ROCHESTER, MN - A fire that originated in the dryer left a family of four homeless Tuesday afternoon.  Nancy Peterson was home doing laundry when the fire started around 1 p.m. at her house.  The fire spread from the dryer into an interior wall, said Rochester Fire Department Battalion Chief Steve Belau.  The fire department was able to quickly extinguish the blaze, but not before the home was left uninhabitable due to fire and smoke damage.

ASHTABULA, OH - A 2-year-old twin boy was killed in a house fire Wednesday when he was trapped in a basement toy room when the dryer apparently caught fire.  Jorden Elliott died shortly after the 3:30 p.m. fire swept through the basement of his Hiawatha Avenue home, officials said.  Several other children and the boy's mother and grandmother were able to escape the fire.  The boy's mother tried to rescue him but said the smoke and flames were too intense.  Neighbors broke windows and squirted a hose into the basement in an effort to stop the blaze before firefighters arrived, but they could not save Jorden.

SCANDIA, MN - No one was injured when a North Branch house caught on fire on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2008.  The fire along Fourth Avenue was reported shortly before 11 a.m.  The fire started on the first floor near the laundry room, and it appeared that the clothes dryer was to blame, according to North Branch Fire Chief John McFarling.  When firefighters arrived, smoke was pouring out of the top of the residence. However, most of the damage was due to either smoke on the first floor or water on the lower level.

ELK RIVER, MN - Investigators say a clogged dryer vent could be the cause of a Saturday apartment fire in Elk River that left hundreds of people homeless.  The fire started in a third floor laundry room.  Investigators say the fire quickly spread to the rest of the building's attic. Firefighters from 10 departments battled the fire, which destroyed part of the third floor and some of the roof.  More than 100 people were displaced by the fire, but no injuries were reported.  Elk River Police Chief Jeff Beahen says damage likely will be "in the millions."

UPTON, MA - Firefighters this afternoon battled a 3-alarm blaze in an apartment building behind the former Madame's Restaurant.  The blaze caused an estimated $35,000 in damage and forced the evacuation of residents and pets.  Fire Chief Michael Bradford said investigators believe the fire, reported at 1:30 p.m., may have been smoldering for a while and started because of lint buildup in a clothes dryer.  Black smoke rose from the apartment building's cupola as fire crews axed holes in the shingled roof for ventilation and battled the blaze, which they were able to contain.

MIDDLETOWN, NY - A man rescued his toddler daughter and his dogs from a fire at his home Wednesday in Middletown.  A firefighter rescued the man’s pair of African gray parrots.  The fire was reported at 3:25 p.m. at 62 Sproat St.  Richard Bonilla said a neighbor banged on the door to let him know there was smoke coming from the basement.  Bonilla checked and found the dryer on fire.  He said he grabbed his daughter Mylee, who turns 2 next month, and got her to safety.  Then he got the dogs out.  Fire Chief Sam Barone said the fire started from a dryer vent clogged with lint.  From there, a pile of clothes caught fire, and ignited the ceiling.

SPARTA, TN - Clothes dryer fire threatens apartment building.
An apartment on the corner of North Church Street and Bockman Way was damaged from a fire that started in the clothes dryer.  According to fire and police officials on the scene, Woody Phillips, resident of the apartment, heard a strange noise and noticed what looked like steam coming from the clothes dryer.  When he tried to open its door, smoke poured out and filled the room.  The inside of the dryer then erupted into flames.  A neighbor used a fire extinguisher to contain the fire until firefighters arrived.  Sparta Fire Department quickly got the situation under controlt.

LEXINGTON, MA - A deadly fire that smoldered for hours while Gena Brown and her two daughters slept Friday night likely started in a dryer vent, according to state fire officials.  The blaze killed Brown shortly before dawn today after she shouted a warning to her girls to flee.  "She yelled to the girls to get out," said Fire Chief William V. Middlemiss.  Ten-year-old Jordan and 12-year-old Kendall scrambled out an upstairs window and across a rooftop before jumping off the garage roof, he said.  Firefighters arrived minutes later, about 5 a.m. Brown never made it out of the house, Middlemiss said, and firefighters later found her near her bedroom window.  State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan said dryer fires are not uncommon in Massachusetts.  In 2006, there were 87 such fires, 72 of which occurred in residential homes. Altogether, the fires caused $500,000 in damage, he said.

BRUNSWICK, MD - The pets that died in a two-unit duplex fire were four dogs, said Harold Domer, director for Frederick County Animal Control.  Two boxers, an adult and a puppy, a Chihuahua and a Chihuahua mix died from smoke inhalation, he said.  The preliminary cause is believed to be lint buildup in the dryer.  The unit where the fire began had heavy fire damage, he said.  The unit joined with it had minimal fire damage but heavy smoke and heat damage.  The fire caused an estimated $150,000 in damage.

SALEM, OH - Firefighters were called to 1585 Merle Road after a neighbor noticed smoke coming from the residence.  Salem police were on the scene and advised a clothes dryer was on fire and had extended throughout the residence.  All off-duty fire personnel were called and entry was made through the front door and the fire was extinguished.  Firefighters searched for occupants, the ceiling was pulled down to check for fire and the residence was ventilated.  A washer and dryer were removed and the occupants advised they were awakened by a smoke detector and they used an extinguisher on the dryer but only partially extinguished it.  The fire continued to grow.  Firefighters estimated the damage to the property at $25,000 and $20,000 to the contents.

MOUNT JOY, PA - An Adams County fire marshal determined Monday that a house fire that caused more than $100,000 in damage started in the dryer.  Fire companies responded to the home of Tina and Michael Midkiff just after 9 a.m., shortly after Tina's mother, who was visiting, returned to the home to find the fire in progress.  The fire burned through the laundry room and part of the adjoining kitchen.  Most of the damage was caused by smoke and heat, Myers said.  "The inside of the house has extensive damage," Lt. Justin Myers of Alpha Fire Co. of Littlestown said.  "There was some very high heat in that house, there was enough that it started to melt appliances," county Deputy Fire Marshal Jerry Poland said.

LAWRENCE, KS - The cause of a fire at 2832 Iowa has been classified as accidental, a news release from the Lawrence-Douglas County Fire & Medical department said Sunday.  The fire on Sept. 5 caused an estimated $80,000 damage to an apartment located in the apartment complex.  A clothes dryer that was incorrectly vented into a wall caused a lint build-up to burn, the release stated.

SANDY, UT - A clothes dryer caught fire at a day spa inside the South Towne Mall early just before noon Thursday in Sandy.  An alert employee at Sanctuary Day Spa saw flames coming from the appliance and quickly used a fire extinguisher to keep the fire under control.  A Sprinkler directly over the dryer also kept the fire from spreading to other stores in the mall.  No one was seriously hurt, but one person was treated for smoke inhalation.  The fire resulted in some water damage inside the spa and the hallway outside.

MANSFIELD, MA - A remote fire alarm system, and the quick actions of firefighters, are being credited with keeping a fire in a clothes dryer from spreading Saturday afternoon.  Fire Chief Neal Boldrighini said a remote central station fire alarm and the work of the first responding fire crews kept a house fire at 1601 West St. small and minimized damage.  The company that monitors the alarms for the homeowner notified the fire department as well as the homeowner, who had left the house, after putting clothes in the dryer.  The house suffered minor smoke damage, and the 17-year-old electric clothes dryer will need replacing.

SANTA ROSA, CA - A house fire earlier in the day at 32030 McCray Road was started from lint in a dryer.  The 800-square-foot home was badly damaged, although no dollar estimate was immediately available.  Tenants Jerry and Minnie Brown were watching TV shortly before noon when they smelled curtains burning in a back room.  The Browns also tried to put out the fire with a garden hose, Delsid said.

CHARLESTON, SC - A woman escaped a mobile home fire Tuesday afternoonafter her smoke alarm sounded, firefighters said.  The woman was at home when the fire started in her dryer at 3:53 p.m., Battalion Chief Eric Phillips said.  Crews contained the fire to the area around the dryer and later aired out the smoke from the home.  Phillips credited a smoke detector that firefighters installed within the past two years with helping the woman avoid serious injury.

SAN RAMON, CA - A kinked clothes dryer line clogged with lint overheated and started a fire that caused $175,000 in damages to a house and injured two cats Monday afternoon, according to the San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District.  The blaze was first reported at 2:07 p.m. by neighbors of the house, Assistant Chief Richard Price said in a news release.  Neighbors alerted the resident, who escaped unharmed.  Two unconscious cats in the home were rescued by firefighters and resuscitated with oxygen at the scene.  One firefighter suffered a minor burn to the hand but did not require hospital treatment.

COLUMBUS, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA - Authorities believe a clothes dryer caused the fire that destroyed the Columbus Hotel in downtown Prince George Aug. 19.  Fire chief Jeff Rowland said Monday that the investigation is now complete, at least at the site of the former landmark hotel.  "Investigators believe the fire started in a clothes dryer on the second floor of the hotel," Rowland said.  Three people are known to have perished in the morning fire, and two others were injured.

BAKERSFIELD, CA - A fire destroyed a single-story home and attached garage and threatened an adjacent residence in southwest Bakersfield Saturday evening.  A dryer may have sparked the blaze, according to the Bakersfield Fire Department.  It took about 20 minutes to extinguish.  Initial damage estimates are $165,000.  Embers spread to the wood shake roof of an adjacent house to the south, creating lots of smoke, Moore said.  But firefighters stretched a hose to protect the neighbor’s house and put out flames that flared in a pile of wood in the backyard and along a fence.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL - An overheated dryer started a large fire that engulfed a home and nearly killed two teenagers inside.  The flames destroyed much of the home at 1132 Maybury Drive and threatened nearby houses.  Two teens - a boy and a girl - were airlifted to Tampa General Hospital, Pasco Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Mike Ciccarello said.  The girl has been released; the boy remained hospitalized Tuesday afternoon.  A dryer was running inside the garage, and a clogged lint screen caused the machine to overheat, Ciccarello said.

AKRON, OH - Seven people had to be relocated after a fire at their Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority building on the city's east side early this morning.  The Akron Fire Department responded to a dryer fire that occurred at a four-apartment building.  The fire was quickly extinguished, said Johnny Player, public information officer for the department.

PITTSBURGH, PA - A veteran firefighter and a garden hose were the first line of defense against a dryer fire that almost claimed several homes.  Although Harry Rupert, 65, belongs to the Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company, he lives a few blocks from where the fire occurred, and was first at the scene.  Firefighters say they're grateful he was so quick to respond.  "If it wasn't for his help, we probably would've lost the house.  When Rupert arrived, he found two neighbors using a garden hose at the rear of the house, where the downstairs laundry room was fully engulfed in flames.

TEMPERANCE, MI - Chief John Bofia of the Bedford Township Volunteer Fire Department reported a fire ignited in the dryer at the Pena Rucki home at 1040 Washington St.  When firefighters arrived, the electric service to the house had separated, causing the entire house to be energized, the chief said. For safety reasons, firefighters were not allowed inside until the electricity was shut off.  Around 10 minutes later, crews from Consumers Power arrived and shut off the electricity.  However, the fire had spread and gutted the older, two-story home. Although the house was still standing, the chief said it would have be torn down.

AKRON, OH - A fire that started in a clothes dryer destroyed a Plain Township home, Fire Chief John Sabo said.  Sabo said no one was home when the fire started in the basement.  No injuries were reported.  ''There was just a massive amount of smoke and heat damage,'' Sabo said.  He said the fire was so intense that it used up the oxygen in the ranch-style home and started to burn itself out.  Damage is estimated at $250,000 for the house and its contents.

EAST HAVEN, CT - East Haven firefighters battled a fire at a historic home on Silversands Road Sunday afternoon.  The fire marshal believes the fire started in an electrical dryer in a bathroom of the house, which was built in the 1700s.  Most of the damage was caused by smoke but, because of the layout of the home, it took firefighters a while to find the flames, fire officials said.

DALLAS, TX - A raging fire caused by a clothes dryer destroyed a rural house in Argyle on Thursday afternoon.  The Denton County Fire Marshal's Office says the family living there put some clothes in the dryer and went out.  When they returned, they found the house ablaze. The blaze sparked two small wildfires in the brush surrounding the home but firefighters were able to extinguish them.  The house appeared to be a total loss.  Estimated damage is $425,000.

MANSFIELD, OH - A dryer fire caused moderate damage to a basement Monday morning.  City firefighters got the call at 10:36 a.m. and arrived to find heavy smoke in the basement and light smoke on the main level.

WATSONVILLE, CA - A fire erupted inside a utility building beside a Carey Avenue home in Freedom Tuesday.  By the time Watsonville firefighters arrived, flames were gushing from the small outbuilding and a column of black and grey smoke was issuing high into the sky. Fire Capt. Matt Ryan said firefighters got a quick handle on the fire that appeared to have started in a clothes dryer.  Flames charred several walls and the roof inside the building.

SAN ANTONIO, TX - Four people were rescued from a one-alarm fire in a Carthage house Sunday.  Heavy smoke blocked the exit, forcing them to use a second floor balcony.  Firefighters arrived at the house just before 11 p.m. and found heavy smoke coming from the second floor of the two-story, two-family home.  One firefighter suffered a hand injury when a hose line failed outside of the house.  He was taken to University Hospital.  Damage is estimated at $10,000. The fire started in a gas dryer in the basement.

WATFORD, ENGLAND, UK - Firefighters extinguished a blaze in Tolpits Lane this morning after a tumble-dryer burst into flames.  Crews from Watford and Garston fire stations were sent to the flat fire in Redding House shortly before 8am.  Firefighters found a small kitchen fire had started from a "spinner" but quickly had the blaze under control.

WORCESTER, UK - A FAMILY pet died last night after a fire broke out while the owners were at the cinema.  Neighbours noticed the fire in Warndon Villages, Worcester, and immediately called Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service.  Two fire crews from Worcester arrived at 7.30pm and brought the blaze under control, but the family’s dog was found dead inside.  The family of five had gone out and left the tumble dryer on, which then caught fire.  The house was left severely damaged by the fire and smoke.

NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA - OWNERS of a Clifford St laundry business are still counting the cost of a fire that gutted the bottom section of their building in the early hours of Monday morning.  Mum's laundry owner Jeff Hayward admitted to feeling numb on Monday morning as he surveyed damage from the blaze which early police investigations revealed started in a dryer.  The fire tore through the laundry, burning clothes and equipment but a quick response from Goulburn Fire Brigade averted its spread to an upstairs section, where a woman was sleeping, and the adjoining carwash.

JACKSON HOLE, WY - Lint likely caught fire in a dryer causing guests of The Rust Parrot Lodge & Spa to evacuate on Sunday, said Rusty Palmer, Jackson Hole/EMS fire chief.  The fire was contained to one dryer, but the smoke that spread throughout the lodge forced about 60 guests outside,  Palmer estimated the damage to the dryer and ceiling tiles to be about $5,000.

MIAMI, OH - There was no one home, and no one hurt, but the residents of a Miami Township home have damage from a fire to deal with.  A dryer caught fire at a house in the 7400 block of Bridgetown Road just before 3:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon.  Police say a retired firefighter saw smoke, and called 9-1-1.  It took firefighters about 20 minutes to knock out the fire.  Officials estimate the damage to be between $5,000 and $10,000.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - The Charlottesville Fire Department responded to a call about a house fire at approximately 12:40 pm Friday.  A caller reported a garage fire with people trapped.  The Charlottesville Battalion Chief Jeff Garrison said that the fire was actually a dryer fire. Two bystanders and a Charlottesville Police Officer helped get the occupants out of the house.  Two residents were injured.

GASTONIA, NC - A small fire at the Gaston County YMCA on West Franklin Boulevard led to evacuations and one child taken to the hospital. Tony Sigmon, CEO of the YMCA said the fire started in a dryer around 4 p.m.  One girl had a smoke induced asthma attack from the fire.  She was transported by ambulance to Gaston Memorial Hospital, according to Gastonia Fire Department Capt. Jody Blanton.  There were about 140 people inside the building when the fire started, Sigmon said.  Everyone was able to get out.  This is the second time the YMCA had a fire start in its dryer.

MADISON, WI - A dryer fire in an apartment building caused $10,000 damage and resulted in a warning from the Madison Fire Department to call 911 immediately when a fire is discovered instead of trying to deal with the situation on your own.  The fire was reported at 12:26 p.m. Wednesday in the two-story apartment building at 511 W. Doty St., about 30 minutes after a building maintenance worker discovered smoke coming from the dryer.

GREEN LAKES, NSW, AUSTRALIA - Two fire trucks and three ambulances were called to Tuncurry’s Taree St on Sunday, all over a load of fluff.  A clothes dryer caught fire and filled a two-storey building with smoke, and Forster Fire Brigade’s Paul Langley said a pile of lint was the likely culprit.  “It appears a build-up of fluff ignited and the smoke activated the building’s smoke detectors,” he said.  Two people were treated at the scene for smoke inhalation, but no-one needed to be hospitalised.

MILTON, MA - A two-alarm fire at a Blue Hill Avenue home forced a Milton family of four to find shelter at a hotel.  The fire started in the family’s clothes dryer or a nearby vent, said Deputy Fire Chief John Foley.  Milton firefighters, with help from the Canton Fire Department, were able to control the blaze quickly, Foley said.  The fire caused heavy smoke damage throughout the house.  Damage was estimated at $75,000 to $100,000, Foley said.

DUNBAR, WV - A father and his two daughters are without a home after an afternoon fire in Dunbar.  Firefighters say a dryer caused the home to go up in smoke Saturday afternoon.  Firefighters got everything under control rather quickly.  The back of the house received most of the damage.  The family did make it out safely. No one was hurt.

LUMBERTON, NJ - Two quick-responding police officers were treated for smoke inhalation yesterday as they extinguished a house fire before firefighters arrived on the scene.  Sgt. Nicholas Peditto and Cpl. Brian Walker entered a burning Black Pine Lane residence about 1:25 p.m. and knocked down the blaze that inflamed the house's laundry room.  The fire originated in a dryer.  Township firefighters soon arrived to vent the house of smoke and prevent the flames from reigniting.  The homeowners were inside the house when the fire erupted, but they escaped the dwelling unhurt.

FORT MYERS, FL - A North Fort Myers apartment went up in flames while a mother and her four young children were inside.  Fire investigators say the woman who lives in the apartment used her clothes dryer earlier in the day and lint inside the dryer vent caught fire. "She's never checked the dryer hose to see if there was anything in it," said Fire investigator Daryl Burton.  Firefighters were able to contain the blaze in the laundry room.  The rest of the unit has minor smoke damage and some water damage from neighbors who used garden hoses to help put out the blaze.

HANOVER, PA - Out of the ashes of the Haladej home, two firefighters brought the owner a wedding ring that was found in the rubble. John Haladej, of 122 Fair Ave., took his wife's wedding ring and placed it on his pinkie as he watched the rest of the firefighters sifting through the debris that used to be the home where he lived for 10 years.  The first fire truck arrived four minutes after the blaze was called in, but Cromer said the entire front of the two-story home was already engulfed in flames.  Firefighters were able to keep the fire from spreading to the house next door.  Haladej said he was sure the dryer started the fire.

HARRISBURG, PA - The fire happened just before 1:00PM Sunday afternoon in the 100 block of Fair Avenue.  Fire fighters believe a dryer unit sparked the fire.  Investigators say the family of five tried putting the flames out before calling for help.  A 25-year-old man was taken to the hospital for observation.  No one else was hurt but officials say the home is completely destroyed.

WORCESTER, UK - A HEAVILY pregnant woman needed hospital treatment following a small fire.  The fire broke out in a tumble dryer and was put out by the occupiers before Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service arrived.  The woman was taken to Worcestershire Royal Hospital for treatment to burns on her hands.

LAWRENCE, NJ - A dryer fire forced the evacuation of several town houses in Lawrence Square Village Sunday afternoon.  Police said a neighbor called 911 just before 3 p.m. about a fire in a second floor home.  All neighbors were safely removed from their homes, and firefighters quickly knocked down the fire, which was believed to be caused by a dryer left running when the owner left home.  Police said there was damage to the laundry room and hallway area in the home.

WASHINGTON, NJ - A fire that started in a dryer destroyed a second-floor laundry room at a Lenape Trail town house but no one was injured, a fire official said.  Firefighters were dispatched at 5:10 p.m., according to the Warren County Communications Center.  Fir departments from the borough, Hackettstown and Washington Township responded to the fire, as did the Washington Emergency Squad, said Keith Gonzales, a borough fire captain.

YOUNGSTOWN, OH - A fire scare this afternoon for a Boardman family when their clothes dryer caught fire.  The owner of the house says she smelled the smoke first, then saw it billowing down the hallway.  Crews were able to put the blaze out quickly and keep it contained. Investigators say it raises awareness of how important it is to empty your lent trap before every use.  Smoke damage is estimated at about 5-thousand dollars.

EWING, NJ - Township firefighters, dispatched about 3:45 p.m. to Wiscasset Avenue, arrived to find smoke billowing from the rear of a split-level home, West Trenton Fire Co. Chief Ralf Brandmaier said.  He said firefighters soon discovered flames burning in the home's utility room. The fire, which began in a clothes dryer, had started to burn up a wall and was just seconds away from spreading to the floor above, he said.  But firefighters quickly put out the flames and contained damage to the utility room, he said.

LANDUDNO JUNCTION, UK - A dryer fire forced a family to flee their home in Leeswood, near Mold.  The blaze at Ffordd Derw spread through the kitchen, and the occupants of the house smelt the smoke as they watched television in the lounge at around midnight on Tuesday.  The blaze, extinguished by firefighters from Mold and Buckley, caused 100% severe fire damage to the tumble dryer and 50% smoke damage to the kitchen and conservatory.

NAPERVILLE, IL - A fire in the laundry room of a Naperville house caused more than $10,000 damage Wednesday morning, but all four residents escaped unharmed.  Assistant Fire Chief Richard Mikel said firefighters responded just after 10 a.m.  "When we got there, the resident was doing a pretty good job containing the fire with his garden hose," Mikel said. "We finished it off, though, and made sure there was nothing smoldering behind the walls or anything."  Mikel said the\ accidental fire was caused by the dryer.  "The fire was pretty much contained to that dryer," he said, "so we're empasizing the importance of keeping those machines maintained and lint traps clean."

NEW YORK, NY - The city's fire department battled a fire for two hours in Tuesday's intense heat in East New York.  The FDNY says a fire started in a laundromat and spread to a bank and another business.  Officials believe lint in one of the dryers ignited and spread through the duct work.  Damage is said to be severe.  During the two hours needed to control the blaze, firefighters rotated crews so no one would be overcome by the heat.  Eleven firefighters suffered minor injuries.

CRAWLEY, ENGLAND, UK - A woman has been taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation and shock after a house fire in Eastbourne.  Three crews from Eastbourne and Pevensey battled the blaze, which broke out in Winchelsea Road.  A spokeswoman said the blaze, which is understood to have originated from the tumble dryer, caused "substantial damage" to the property.

HAZELTON, PA - A clothes dryer is to blame for a blaze that left four people homeless in Black Creek Township on Monday, officials said. Area fire departments responded to the fire, which gutted a two-story home.  No one was injured, although two cats owned by the family are missing.  Area fire personnel arrived to find the structure fully involved, said Joe Lescowitch, chief of the Nuremberg-Weston Volunteer Fire Co.  Lescowitch, who investigated the cause of the fire, deemed it accidental and said it began in the clothes dryer.

MORNINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - Jasmine Gillie, 22, and her boyfriend Josh Saunders, 20, were asleep inside their rented weatherboard home in Mornington early this morning when the large four-month-old terrier cross Tank began jumping on their bed and barking.  The couple said a fire which had started in a clothes dryer had spread quickly through the house and filled their room with smoke.  They ran from the house just minutes before it was engulfed in flames, they said.  "If Tank hadn't have been there we would not have woken up -- he saved our lives," Mr Saunders said.

VISILIA, CA - A fire that started in a clothes dryer's exhaust pipe did an estimated $35,000 in damages to a Tulare home, displacing a family Tuesday morning, a fire official said.  Responding firefighters contained the fire to the laundry room, Tulare City Fire Capt. Cameron Long said.  But there was fire damage to the garage and laundry room.  "There was a significant amount of fire in the garage," Long said.

VALLEJO, CA - A North Vallejo home sustained about $150,000 in damage Friday night after a dryer caught fire, fire officials said.  The flames started at about 7:15 p.m. at the home on the 100 block of Leonard Street and quickly spread to the attic, authorities reported.  Fire crews reportedly had the fire under control within a few minutes of arrival and no one was injured in the blaze, fire officials said.

CARRBORO, NC - A clogged dryer exhaust tube was blamed for a fire that destroyed a family’s laundry room and spread smoke damage throughout their apartment.  Firefighters responded after receiving a call from a neighbor who heard a smoke detector sounding inside the apartment.  The tenant had left the dryer running, and neither she nor her daughter were home at the time of the fire.

NORTH ANDOVER, MA - A smoky, two-alarm blaze believed to have started in a clothes dryer caused heavy damage to a one-story addition at the rear of a group home at 285 Broadway yesterday.  "We believe the fire was accidental and started in a clothes dryer that had been left running and caught fire," Deputy fire Chief Charles Ripley said.  The group home is a satellite home operated by St. Ann's Home, and 12 girls lived there.  The one-story addition at the back of the building appeared to contain a family room.  That room and a small area of the kitchen had fire damage, and there was smoke damage throughout the remainder of the building, Gallant said.

LEEDS, YORKSHIRE, UK - Firefighters have issued a safety warning over tumble dryers after one burst into flames in a Armley home. Stanningley fire crew's watch manager Jon Needham said the pensioner living in the dormer bungalow, at Armley Grange Rise, had a lucky escape because she was at home when the machine caught fire.  Mr Needham said accumulated fibres in tumble dryers meant overheating was a fairly common problem.  The kitchen was badly smoke damaged and the machine and the units around it were destroyed.

WARRINGTON, ENGLAND, UK - THREE young children and their parents cheated death by minutes when a dryer caught fire while they were sleeping.  Petrit Hoxha, his wife Vicky and their children were rescued from their burning home after being woken up by the sound of firefighters hammering down the back door of their house on Osprey Close in Orford.  The family were treated at the scene by paramedics for smoke inhalation.  Vicky, a 27-year-old housewife, said: "I had put the dryer on at about 8pm and it takes a while to dry the clothes.  I can't believe it caught fire.  We are having to go to my mum's because of the smoke damage and we've been told not to touch anything.  "I don't know yet how much we have lost but nearly everything is black."

WIGAN, ENGLAND, UK - Firemen saved a mother and her baby from a burning house in Wigan today.  They were understood to have been trapped in an upstairs bedroom of the mid-terraced house in Scholefield Lane, Scholes, as the fire raged below.  A fire service switchboard operator stayed on the phone giving the woman emergency advice until firemen arrived.  Two fire engines form Wigan and third fire engine from Hindley were at the scene within minutes of receiving her 999 call at 6.55am.  Both the woman and her child were were given oxygen. Firefighters believe the source of the fire was a tumble dryer.

READING, ENGLAND, UK - Fire broke out at a home in Lower Earley after a tumble dryer burst into flames, destroying a family’s kitchen and utility room. Lower Earley mum-of-two Mary Thompson told of the fire which engulfed her kitchen.  The Thompsons’ home also smelt of smoke, and fire tape - which crews from Whitley Wood and Wokingham Road used to seal off the house - was still visible.  She said: “Earlier in the day the tumble dryer had been on three times and had been fine.  Then we saw flames coming from the tumble dryer.  “The fire spread to the kitchen and the utility room. But the fire brigade were really good and arranged for us to stay at a hotel in Sonning.”

WINTER HAVEN, FL - Fire, blamed on a clothes dryer, caused extensive damage to a house in the Jan Phyl Village area late Tuesday.  The Red Cross has been called to provide emergency assistance to five adults who are displaced, according to Polk County Fire Rescue.  The fire broke out a little before 6 p.m. and first responders arrived to find the back half of the home in flames.

SALEM, OR - A dryer was blamed for a fire tonight that forced evacuation of 88 residents from a Salem retirement building.  Bill Holmstrom, a Salem Fire Department spokesman, said firefighters responded to a 7:35 p.m. alarm at Redwood Heights Retirement & Assisted Living Residence, 4050 12th St.S.E.  The fire, which sent smoke throughout the building, was traced to a first-floor laundry room.  Damage was estimated at more than $10,000.

TODMORDEN, UK - FIREFIGHTERS from Todmorden were called out to a house fire on North View at 10.15am.  A tumble dryer had set alight and the fire spread to the washing machine and kitchen units, filling the house with smoke.  The crew entered the property wearing breathing apparatus, put out the fire using a hose reel and then pumped out the smoke.

SEATTLE, WA - An overheated laundry dryer was the cause of a fire that severely damaged a home Tuesday just before noon.  Shoreline Fire Department spokeswoman Melanie Granfors said smoke and flames were visible from the house when firefighters arrived.  A woman and her son, who were living in the single-story house, were able to escape.

BAKERSFIELD, CA - A two-alarm fire that destroyed a home Wednesday afternoon started in the laundry room when a dryer possibly ignited some lint, fire officials said Friday.  No one was hurt in the blaze that left the all-wooden house on the northwest corner of Wilkins and Augusta streets completely burned.  From the laundry room, the fire went through the house, to the patio and through the attic, said Capt. Bryan Perry with the Bakersfield Fire Department.  “There's a lot of people that don't check their filters in their dryers, and they should,” Perry said.  It took no more than five minutes for the fire to destroy the home, officials said.

NEWARK, NJ - A laundry room fire forced the evacuation of the Wyndham Hotel on Scudders Mill Road in Plainsboro early today, though no injuries were reported and the fire was contained to a clothes dryer, police said.  Guests and staff were evacuated for 45 minues after the 1:53 a.m. fire at the hotel, police said.  The fire started in a clothes dryer in a lower-level laundry room and was quickly extinguished, police said.  Smoke damage was primarily contained to the laundry room, police said.

LAKEWOOD, CA - A dryer caused a house fire in Lakewood on Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.  The fire destroyed the second level of a home on the 5100 block of Premiere Avenue, Lakewood Sheriff's Lt. Bryan Proctor said.  Authorities estimated the fire caused $300,000 in damage.  There were no injuries.

PORTAGE, MANITOBA CANADA - A faulty clothes dryer is responsible for a fire last night.  Firefighters responded to a call from the residents.  A spokesperson says they returned home and smelled smoke, then called 911.  They were told to leave the building immediately, and the fire department would be dispatched.   Damage is estimated at $100,000.  Firefighters stayed on the scene until about midnight.

EDINBURG, TX - Smoke and fire at the Evins Regional Juvenile Center forced prison officials to evacuate dozens of inmates.  Edinburg Fire received a call shortly after 10 a.m. of a fire in one of the facility's laundry rooms.  When they arrived, firefighters found a laundry dryer on fire, said Edinburg Fire Chief Shawn Snider.  "The dryer is destroyed and there is smoke damage inside the room," Snider said.  Snider said dryer fires are common.

DERBY, ENGLAND, UK - Firefighters have been called to tackle a blaze at a city centre restaurant.  Crews were called just after 1.15pm.  It is thought the fire, which was on the second floor, was caused by a tumble dryer.  Firefighters used four breathing apparatus and one hose reel jet when tackling the blaze, which was under control by 2.20pm.  The extent of the damage is not yet known.  Police closed the road in both directions.

GROVER, NC - On Thursday, Blair Hawkins gave a tearful thank you to the teenager that saved her toddler from a burning mobile home. "Because of you, today my son is still alive," she said, "I thank you from the bottom of my heart."  She called 14-year-old Laura McDaniel a guardian angel.  Hawkins left her home, to take her 6-year-old to the hospital.  A group of her friends, including McDaniel, stayed at her mobile home with her 1-year-old son, Aiden Moore.  They rushed out when a dryer fire started, and then realized they left the little boy inside.  Witnesses said McDaniel ran in through the back door and grabbed Aiden from a playpen near the burning dryer.  Hawkins said her young family lost everything in the fire.  They have no insurance.

ROCHESTER, NY - A house fire sent smoke throughout an Irondequoit neighborhood Thursday morning.  Four fire departments responded to the fire.  Laurelton Fire Chief Miguel Santiago says a dryer caught on fire in the basement.  No one was home.  Chief Santiago says some water pipes in the basement burst due to the heat.  That put the fire out before crews even got there, but there was still a lot of smoke to deal with.

GROVER, NC - A Grover family's home was destroyed Wednesday evening after a dryer caught fire.  The mobile home at 2350 Cleveland Ave. caught fire at 9:05 p.m.  The family had lived at the residence for six years.  Chief Greg Harris of the No. 3 Volunteer Fire Department said the fire spread very quickly and that the home was a total loss.  "Four people were in the house but no one was hurt.  Everyone got out safe," he said.  "It took us 20 minutes to contain it."

MILTON, MA - A dryer is the cause of a house fire that ripped through a Milton triple-decker, killing one man.  The blaze started on Monday just after noon in a laundry room on the second floor.  Investigators believe the lint from the dryer built up in a vent pipe, began to heat up and eventually caught fire.  The fire spread to the third floor, where a man was found in a bedroom.  According to the Massachusetts Fire Incident Reporting System, there were 97 dryer fires in 2006, which resulted in one death and an estimated $489,922 in damages.

INDEPENDENCE, MO - A fire that started in a dryer late Friday morning has left a family of five homeless.  Assistant Chief Tim Krickle, with the Independence Fire Department, confirmed that the fire spread to the first floor of the home, causing extensive damage.  He said one resident was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene but there were no other injuries.

SPRINGFIELD, MA - Shortly after 12:30 p.m. Sunday Franklin County Firefighters responded to a house on Stone Valley Road.  "Upon arrival there was very, very light smoke and we initially thought it was just a dryer due to humidity and conditions.  But, when they went downstairs to investigate a dryer fire they found it actually had a working fire," said Orange Fire Chief Dennis Annear.  Fire officials said once they went inside they realized the situation was even worse because an elderly woman stuck inside.  "They pulled a woman out and there were performing cpr on her. Then finally the ambulance got here. They put her in the ambulance and they were sitting here for another 15 minutes or so before they left with her," said Elise Sluder, a neighbor.  Officials said the victim sustained smoke inhalation but had a pulse when she was transported from the scene.

ALAMEDA, CA - Firefighters extinguished a clothes dryer that had burst into flames inside a coin operated laundry facility on the 1100 block of Pacific Marina.  Firefighters fought through thick black smoke at the laundry's entrance to reach the fire, which firefighters put out with a pre-connected hose line.  The dryer was taken out of the business and firefighters kept busy extinguishing lingering embers and hot spots before ventilating the building.

KITSAP, WA - A fire late Thursday at a Conifer Drive home displaced a family of five, according to Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue.  The homeowner awoke to find the two-story home thick with smoke - but was unable to get downstairs to wake two of her children, reports said.  She lowered one of her children from the second story to safety, then jumped from the house herself.  She was then able to pound on the children's windows downstairs and they both escaped safely, crews said.  She then called 911 from a neighbor's home.  Firefighters doused the flames and kept damage to the home's laundry area, but heavy smoke damage was reported elsewhere through the house.  The family dog, which was in the basement of the house, was rescued by crews.  The Kitsap County Fire Marshal's Office said the fire started in the dryer.

MONTGOMERY, AL - The Montgomery Fire Department tells WSFA 12 News they are treating an early morning fire on as an accident. Officials say the fire was most likely started by a clothes dryer.  The fire was well involved when fire fighters arrived on scene, and it took 20 minutes to get the blaze under control.  There were no significant injuries, but one firefighter was treated for first and second degree burns.  Unfortunately, the house is not liveable at this time because it was so heavily damaged.

DEKALB, MS - A trip to the grocery store Monday evening turned out to be anything but ordinary for the Carpenter family of DeKalb.  Kendra and Lyndon arrived home just as two of their three children were running out of the family's burning house.  Nothing in the home was spared from the fire, which is believed to have started from the dryer.  "We're all heartbroken, but the most important thing is our kids made it out safe and we're all here, alive and well," Carpenter said. "That's really all that matters."

DISS, ENGLAND, UK - Fire crews were called to put out a blaze which started in a tumble dryer this morning.  The machine was in the garage of a home in Lewis Drive, Roydon, and caught fire at about 6.40am.  Two fire crews from Diss used breathing apparatus, hose reel jets and a thermal image camera and put out the blaze within 15 minutes.  No one was harmed, but the garage was damaged by the fire.

MILFORD, DE - A fire that caused about $5,000 damage to a shed southeast of Milford started in a clothes dryer that was operating at the time, officials said today.  The state Fire Marshal’s Office investigatged the blaze in the 20000 block of Slaughter Beach Road.  The Ellendale Fire Department responded to the blaze in the 12-foot by 12-foot shed about 9 p.m. Sunday.

PLEASANTON, CA - A fire that apparently started in a clothes dryer caused $375,000 damage to a two-car garage and attached single family house this morning, fire officials said.  Fire Battalion Chief Joe Testa said the fire, which was reported at 5:53 a.m., destroyed the garage.  There was also some fire damage to the house, which is attached to the garage.  The dryer was in operation when the fire started, he said.  One firefighter sustained a minor injury fighting the fire.  "The homeowner did the right thing, he got his family out safely, then called 9-1-1-," Testa said.

PETERBOROUGH, CANADA - A dryer caught fire in a Weller Street home just after 8:30 a.m. yesterday.  The fire caused about $700 in damage to the dryer and $2,000 to its contents, the city fire department said.  A buildup of lint in the dryer and a disconnected pipe vent is the suspected cause, the fire department said.

BIRMINGHAM, AL - A clogged dryer vent sparked the fire Tuesday night that destroyed 23 apartments at the Enclave at Mountain Brook, Irondale fire officials said today.  Fire Chief Randy Davis said lint built up inside the dryer vent caught fire as the dryer was running inside a unit of the apartment complex.  The fire ripped through the building as Irondale, Birmingham and Mountain Brook firefighters fought to contain the blaze.  There were 23 families displaced.

FAIRMONT, WV - A Tuesday morning fire that destroyed the home of a Colfax family has been determined to be accidental, an assistant state fire marshal said.  “The fire originated in the back of a dryer,” said Mackey Ayersman.  The older, wooden-frame farmhouse belonged to Tammy Shriver, a photographer for the Times West Virginian.  Shriver was home alone doing some laundry in the basement shortly before 9 a.m. when the fire started.  She and the family’s pets escaped unharmed.  But the house was destroyed.

PETERLEE, UK - A WOMAN had a lucky escape when her clothes caught fire in a tumble dryer.  Fire chiefs at Peterlee Fire Station say the occupant was "very lucky" after the dryer went up in flames.  Two crews from the station were called to the house at around 9.20pm mon Monday after the filter on the machine got clogged up, overheated and set fire to the clothes inside.

LINDENWOLD, NJ - A dryer caught fire and the residents of an apartment had to be evacuated this morning in Camden County, according to officials.  The fire broke out at the Landings of Pine Lake apartment complex, located at 98 Oak Avenue in Lindenwold, around 6:30 this morning, authorities said.  Firefighters from Lindenwold, Clementon, Laurel Springs, Berlin and Somerdale worked together and were able to put the fire out in about 20 minutes, containing it to the single unit, according to officials.  The apartment, shared by a couple, was heavily damaged, fire officials said.

WILLINGBORO, PA - A 69-year-old woman died after she was pulled from a burning house in Willingboro yesterday morning.  At 8:52 a.m., 911 dispatchers received a call about a clothes-dryer fire in the 100 block of Millbrook Drive.  The blaze had spread by the time firefighters arrived.  The unidentified woman was taken to Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden, where she was pronounced dead.

SHREVEPORT, LA - Shreveport fire investigators believe a clothes dryer caused a fire that destroyed a home early Tuesday morning.  Ten people were inside when the fire broke out around 1:00 a. m.  All of them managed to get out of the home, in the 3300 block of Frederick Street, safely, although firefighters say they had to treat one woman who became upset.  Firefighters say flames and smoke were coming out of the front door by the time they arrived.  The house, though, could not be saved. The fire caused heavy damage throughout it.

SPRINGFIELD, MA - A clothes dryer fire caused $40,000 damage and displaced four residents, said Fire Department spokesman Lt. Michael Richard.  No one was injured in the fire, which was reported just before 10 p.m., he said.  Four residents were home when the fire started but everyone got out in time, he said.  Investigators determined the fire started in a basement dryer.

ANN ARBOR, MI - A fire that started in a dryer and spread to a nearby electrical panel destroyed a home in Ypsilanti Township early Saturday morning.  No one was injured in the fire.  The residents were evacuated and taken by the Washtenaw County chapter of the American Red Cross to a nearby hotel, said Ypsilanti Township Fire Capt. Kurt Owings.

VANCOUVER, CANADA - About 45 seniors at a West Vancouver care home were evacuated Thursday night after a wing of the facility caught fire.  Thirty firefighters from West Vancouver and North Vancouver attacked the blaze at Inglewood Care Centre, which ignited in a clothes dryer in the laundry room and spread through a ventilation shaft to an upper roof deck.  "It wasn't that large but it was incredibly stubborn and very tough to get to," said division fire chief Martin Ernst of West Vancouver Fire and Rescue.  Structural damages are estimated at about $80,000.

AKRON, OH - A blaze that apparently began in a dryer caused $25,000 in damages at a home on Akron's Bank Street.  Firefighters responded to the blaze in the 800 block of Bank Street, in East Akron, on Thursday afternoon.  The fire spread from the basement to the floor above, the fire department said.

NORTH ATTLEBORO, MA - Firefighters extinguished a fire Thursday morning at a salon started accidentally by a clothes dryer. Firefighters were dispatched at 2:20 a.m. after receiving an alarm and found the fire in the laundry room, Fire Chief Peter Lamb said.  Lamb said the damage was estimated at $30,000 to $50,000.  The fire damage was limited to the laundry room, but smoke went throughout the building.

WASHINGTON, GA - Ernest Clark looks on at his nearly destroyed home Monday morning on the Elberton Highway north of Tignall.  Clark said he and his wife escaped unharmed after a fire started in a clothes dryer vent.  Fire Chief Alan Poss said that the lack of volunteer firefighters in the area during the day was a problem, but firefighters were able to save part of the home that housed family photo albums and heirloom firearms.

ROANOKE, VA - Fire crews rescued a woman Wednesday afternoon after a fire trapped her on the second floor of a Southwest Roanoke building.  When firefighters arrived, Roanoke Fire-EMS spokeswoman Tiffany Bradbury said, "they found a person who was hanging out of her second-floor window."  The woman, Bradbury said, was trapped by a fire burning inside a clothes dryer.  Crews used a ladder to help the woman down and rescued her dog.  The fire caused about $3,000 in damage, mostly smoke and water.

BARRE, VT - A fire that started in the dryer and spread to the vent of an upstairs bathroom was called in around 9:40 p.m.  The incident caused minor damage to a condominium and one person inside escaped without injury.  Had the smoke alarm not gone off, the fire could have been more harmful, according to Montpelier Fire Chief Gesualdo Schneider.  Schneider attributed the fire to lint build up in the dryer.

PRINCETON, IL - This afternoon the Princeton Fire Department was called to a house fire along Straley Avenue.  A dryer caught on fire and spread into the room.  The fire was contained in that room, and firefighters were able to get it under control.

OCEAN CITY, FL - The Ocean City-Wright Department contained a small dryer fire Sunday that caused an estimated $5,000 in smoke and heat damage in the laundry room of the Pier 1 apartment complex.  Responding to an emergency call at 11:11 a.m., firefighters discovered smoke coming from the rear of the structure.

BENTON CITY, WA - A family of four lost everything in a fire in their mobile home Saturday, relatives said.  All of the family's belongings were destroyed in the fire.  They had no insurance.  Templeton believed the family had lived in the single-wide mobile home for about seven years. "It's gutted," Templeton said.  "There's nothing left.  It's totally black.  Whatever walls are still standing are smoldering."  Templeton said firefighters she talked to at the scene believed the fire started in the dryer.

CASTRO VALLEY, CA - A clothes dryer started a fire that damaged a house in the Washington Manor neighborhood last Wednesday afternoon.  Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze within ten minutes, largely containing it to the garage where the dryer was located and the front of the house. No one was injured in the blaze.

LEXINGTON, NC - A Holly Grove couple’s home was damaged by a fire sometime Tuesday between 2:15 and 6:45 p.m., said Holly Grove Fire Department Assistant Chief Herbert Frank.  Holly Grove, Central and Triangle volunteer fire departments responded to the call.  The fire began in the clothes dryer, Frank said.  Fire damage was limited to the laundry room, but smoke and heat damage affected the entire home. The homeowners went to stay with family, he added.

MIAMI TOWNSHIP, OH - A fire damaged at least one apartment at a Miami Township complex early Tuesday morning.  When firefighters arrived, they found the two-story apartment filled with smoke and a fire on the second floor.  The fire was knocked down relatively quickly, but extensive work was necessary due to fire extension in the wall, ceiling and floor, said Assistant Fire Chief Harold Thiele.  Thiele said it appears a clothes dryer is to blame for the fire, which did about $20,000 damage.

EXETER, ENGLAND UK - A family of five had to escape a burning building by jumping out of windows after fire tore through their city home. Now the family fear they will be left with a big bill because they could not get insurance following two recent break-ins at the property.  The drama began when a tumble dryer caught fire at the house in the early hours of yesterday.  There is smoke damage throughout the house.

ALYESBURY, ENGLAND UK - FIREFIGHTERS attended a kitchen fire in Wendover yesterday evening.  Two crews from Aylesbury Station went to the house in Aylesbury Road at 6.15pm, after a tumble dryer caught fire.  They were at the scene for around an hour.  A woman and her two children were checked for smoke inhalation by ambulance staff, but were okay.  The kitchen suffered smoke damage.

VINELAND, NJ - Firefighters extinguished a small laundry fire at a group home.  Fire Capt. Robert Scarpa said the blaze started in a dryer and caused damage to the laundry room.  There was also heavy smoke damage throughout the house, he said.  Eight residents live in the one-story home, and no one was injured, Scarpa said.  Firefighters were on the scene for about an hour.

CHESAPEAKE, VA - Chesapeake fire officials say a clothes dryer caused a fire that killed three people in a house fire Thursday.  Authorities have not released the names of the victims, who were found in a room above the garage at the home.  Captain Steve Johnson said all three are believed to have been between the ages of 18 and 25.  He said one of the victims apparently went upstairs to help the other two but ended up trapped with them.

SAN LEANDRO, CA - A malfunctioning clothes dryer sparked a fire that caused extensive damage Wednesday afternoon to a home on Farnsworth Street, fire officials said.  Alameda County firefighters arrived at the one-story, single family home at about 3:30 p.m., according to Alameda County Fire spokeswoman Aisha Knowles.  Heavy smoke was coming out of the front of the residence and was visible from five blocks away, Knowles said.  Firefighters extinguished the fire within 10 minutes of their arrival, Knowles said.  There were no injuries, but firefighters were unable to locate the cats.  A dryer in the garage was determined to be the cause and origin of the fire, Knowles said. The house suffered extensive fire, smoke and water damage.

CHERRY HILL, NJ - Fourteen-year-old Bobby Ferrell had already escaped his burning home in Jobstown, Burlington County, authorities said. But standing outside with his brother and sister early yesterday, he realized that their mother was inside, apparently trapped on the second floor.  The athletic ninth grader raced back into the smoke and flames to save her.  Neither he nor his mother, Michelle Ferrell, escaped the four-alarm fire, which gutted their house in rural Springfield Township near Fort Dix.  Ferrell, 53, and her children were home shortly after 4:30 a.m. when the fire broke out in a clothes dryer.

THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO, CANADA - Thunder Bay fire crews were called to a Gore Street apartment Wednesday afternoon after a passersby noticed smoke coming from the multi-unit residence.  The fire started in a dryer in a basement apartment and fire crews had it quickly contained.  Huge fans were used to clear the smoke out of the building and Captain David Grant says no one was injured and there was minimal damage to the building.

ERIE, PA - Erie firefighters spent part of the morning Tuesday dousing a blaze believed to have started in a clothes dryer.  Firefighters said they responded to the call at 1:56 a.m. Tuesday and had the fire under control by 2:30 a.m.  The fire started in a gas dryer in the basement, fire inspectors said. They said the dryer's lint trap was full and the lint caught fire.  The fire was contained to the basement, but there was some smoke damage to the house's upstairs, fire inspectors said.

BOCA RATON, FL - Boca Raton firefighters responded to a structure fire at 6503 N. Military Trail.  Firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from the structure.  Firefighters made entry and found the fire in the laundry closet in the kitchen area and quickly extinguished the fire.  Fire officials stated that the fire appears to have originated in the clothes dryer.  Damage is estimated at approximately $50,000.  Eight families were evacuated and the occupants of the affected apartment were displaced.

WAUSAU, WI - A Mosinee mobile home was destroyed Saturday evening in a fire thought to have been caused by a dryer, according to the Marathon County Sheriff's Department.  Nicole Boe, 21, was working on her laptop computer Saturday evening when she smelled smoke in the mobile home owned by her father, according to the police report.  When she saw flames coming out of the dryer and could not put them out, she and her brother, Timothy Boe, 23, fled the home, calling police.  Their father was not at home at the time of the fire, which police reports say is thought to have been caused by a faulty dryer part or a clogged lint filter.  The home was a total loss, police said.

BOCA RATON, FL - A Saturday apartment fire in Boca Raton caused eight families to be evacuated and displaced one.  The occupant of the apartment came home to find the door knob hot to the touch, said Frank Corregio, public information officer for the Boca Raton fire department.  She opened the door, noticed heavy smoke and called 911, he said.  Firefighters found the fire in a kitchen-area laundry closet.  Investigators said the fire appears to have started in the clothes dryer.  Fire officials estimate the fire caused about $50,000 in damage.

DUNBAR, WV - A fire in Kanawha County leaves folks without a place to stay Saturday night.  The fire broke out just before six Saturday night.  No one was injured but some of the tenants had to be evacuated from the building. &nsbp;Firefighters say it appears a dryer started the fire.  One apartment is a complete loss.

LINTHWAITE WEST YORKSHIRE , UK - A mother and her three children escaped yesterday from a house fire started by their tumble dryer. Fire broke out at the house at 12.45am today, after a tumble dryer left on overnight caught fire.  The 32-year-old woman was asleep upstairs, but smelled smoke and woke to get her children - aged two, 12 and 14 - out of the house safely.  She and the two-year-old girl were taken to hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.  The kitchen of the house was left burnt out and there was severe smoke damage to the rest of the house.

LORDSWOOD, UK - TWO people fought their way past fierce flames after fire broke out in a flat.  The couple escaped with smoke inhalation after waking up to find a blaze had started in a tumble dryer.  Crews from Maidstone and Sittingbourne fire stations spent nearly two hours fighting the fire.  Despite this, Maidstone crew manager Mick Gay said about 80 per cent of the one bedroom flat was damaged by fire.  The couple suffered some smoke inhalation but were otherwise unhurt and both returned to work yesterday morning.

BOSTON, MA - A 51-year-old nursing assistant died today in Lowell after she helped evacuate elderly residents from a nursing home during a small fire in a dryer.  Rawlene Lizotte collapsed outside the Fairhaven Healthcare Center after helping to evacuate six residents, said Deputy Chief Patrick McCabe of the Lowell Fire Department.  Rescuers tried to resuscitate Lizotte and rushed her to Lowell General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.  Firefighters responded to the fire, which started in a dryer in the laundry room.

ROCHESTER, NY - Firefighters in Greece battled a basement fire that started in a clothes dryer.  Two children, ages 12 and 14, were sleeping in the two-story house when the fire ignited, but they escaped safely before firefighters arrived, said Barnard Fire Chief Jim Gallagher.  Gallagher said it appeared that the blaze started in an operating clothes dryer and quickly spread to clothes piled on top and near the dryer.  The basement had moderate fire damage and charred structural beams, rafters and some electrical wiring, Gallagher said.  The remainder of the house had moderate smoke damage.

YAMHILL, OR - A two-alarm fire Monday morning caused $75,000 to $100,000 damage to a Yamhill home and its contents.  The blaze went to two alarms, with Carlton, Gaston and Yamhill firefighters responding. The residence is owned by Steve Belt, who has been renting it to Elmer Wyatt.  Wyatt was not home.  The fire was traced to an electric dryer.

NEEDHAM, MA - Police and fire departments both responded to Grey’s Laundromat on Church Street with reports of a dryer fire.  According to reports, when an officer arrived at the scene, he saw flames coming out of “dryer no. 1” and used an extinguisher to help put out the fire. The fire department arrived shortly after to put the remainder of the fire out.  Estimated damage is $6,000, which includes the dryer itself and smoke damage to the wall.

QUINCY, IL - A Quincy residence was heavily damaged in a fire early this morning.  Twelve firefighters were dispatched to the scene and found the back of the house engulfed in flames when they arrived.  Quincy Fire Assistant Chief Rob Tipton said the fire was started by a gas dryer.  Flames damaged the kitchen and the back portion of the house, with heat and smoke damage reported to the rest of structure. The house sustained heavy damage, Tipton said.

CLEVELAND, OH - Two months after Howard and Kathy Brown paid off their mortgage, their house was destroyed in a fire Friday that also killed their dog.  At least the couple are alive, their daughter said.  "All of my memories from my childhood are gone," Kim Hixenbaugh said, fighting back tears.  The Browns were not injured, but Tippy, their pet Shih Tzu, was killed.  The house is a total loss, firefighters said. Accumulated lint in a dryer vent ignited and caused the fire, Assistant Chief David McNeilly said.

SIMCOE, CANADA - A house fire is going to cost more than 160 thousand dollars in damages.  Fire crews arrived at the residence in Cayuga Thursday to find the blaze engulfing the Ottawa Street North home.  They extinguished the blaze.  Investigation has revealed the fire was started by a faulty clothes dryer.  All occupants are safe and accounted for, but the Haldimand County Fire department reminds everyone that not only are smoke detectors mandatory, they can save your life.

BEAVER, PA - A clothes dryer fire at Rosemont Apartments, 199 Rosemont Drive, Moon Township, forced the evacuation of several residents around 3 p.m. Thursday.  Moon Fire Chief Charles Belgie Jr. said no one was injured and residents were allowed to return to their apartments as soon as firefighters aired out the building.

CROCKERY TOWNSHIP, MI - A woman in Crockery Township got quite a scare this morning when her clothes dryer caught on fire and spread to the rest of the house.  The fire department was called to the home around 9:00am.  The woman reported a few moments later that she heard an explosion.  The fire department says these types of fires can be prevented by cleaning out the lint trap and dryer vent.

BEND, OR - Inadequate dryer venting sparked a laundry-room fire that caused extensive heat and smoke damage throughout a La Pine-area home, officials said.  The blaze spread throughout the laundry room area and began to reach into the attic space above the laundry room of the two-bedroom home, built in 1975 and valued at $285,000.

NEW LEBANON, OH - Fire investigators said a clothes dryer caught fire Tuesday morning at a nursing home frightening the residents.  It happened at the New Lebanon Harborside Health Care Center on Mills road.  Crews quickly brought the fire under control, and no evacuations were necessary.  There are no reports on the extent of the damage.

LEAVENWORTH, WA - A fire that began in a clothes dryer destroyed a single-wide mobile home Sunday, said Capt. Bill Horner of Chelan County Fire District 3.  A woman in her 20s was taken by ambulance to be treated for smoke inhalation at Central Washington Hospital, said Horner.  He said he did not know her name, but that she was a resident of the home and able to speak with firefighters at the scene.  Horner said three-quarters of the home was fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.  It took about an hour to contain the fire, but the home and all its contents were destroyed.

KALAMAZOO, MI - A Kalamazoo family is safe thanks to working smoke detectors in their home.  A woman and her two children were able to get out of their home in time Saturday night after a fire started inside.  Investigators think a dryer is to blame.  It took crews about 20 minutes to get that fire under control.

ENDWELL, NY - A popular Endwell restaurant, Brothers 2, early Wednesday became the latest in a string of unrelated fires in the Binghamton area in the past seven days.  Fire investigators said the origin of the fire was a gas dryer in the basement below the kitchen of the restaurant.  "The first firefighter into the basement said the flames appeared to be in the area of the drum in the dryer, and the floor joists right above the dryer were burned off," said Broome County Senior Fire Investigator Thomas Vroman.  Firefighters were at the scene for nearly six hours dealing with the fire, which was confined to the basement, said Endwell Fire Chief John Ruck.  The fire burned a hole in the kitchen floor, officials said.

EAST HUNTINGDON, PA - Firefighters had to rescue one person at the New Stanton Commons on Sonny Lane in East Huntingdon Township around 10 p.m. Tuesday.  It's believed a faulty dryer may be to blame.  A resident put a load of laundry in to it.  When the person came down a few hours later, the dryer had caught on fire.  The fire was contained to the laundry room, but smoke flooded the building.

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL - The Red Cross is providing aid to a local family of five after a flames damaged the attic and electrical system of their home late Tuesday night.  St. Lucie County Fire District officials believe the fire started from a dryer vent at the home, located in the 300 block of Southwest Tulip Boulevard.  Officials arrived at the home about 11 p.m., according to the Fire District.

TUCSON, AZ - Four people were displaced Tuesday evening after a fire broke out at their Midtown home, an official said.  No injuries were reported but the blaze did cause an estimated $150,000 in damage.  The fire has been ruled accidental and is believed to have started in the dryer, said Capt. Norm Carlton, a Tucson Fire Department spokesman.

LORAIN, OH - An early morning fire at a Toledo Avenue home left two cats dead and a firefighter injured, according to Lorain fire officials.  A neighbor called the fire department at 5:27 a.m. to report the house at 3624 Toledo Ave. was on fire.  The fire started in the back of the house on the first floor, and it appears it was caused by an electrical dryer, Lorain Fire Capt. Jeff Fenn said.  The fire extended up the back of the house. Fenn estimated the damage to the structure $30,000. The house is not liveable, he said.

SPRINGFIELD, MA - A cellar fire in a 1½ story residence displaced a mother and her two young children and caused approximately $5,000 to $10,000 in damage, a Fire Department spokesman said yesterday.  Jeannine Pouliot and her children were alerted by a carbon monoxide alarm and escaped the house without injury, said the spokesman, who said the fire was caused by a clothes dryer.  The three plan to live temporarily with Pouliot's family in Springfield, he said.

SOMERVILLE, AL - Somerville Firefighters worked a house fire earlier that destroyed a house Sunday afternoon.  The fire happened on East Street just off of Center Springs Road in Morgan County.  The house was engulfed when firefighters arrived on scene.  Investigators believe the fire started in the dryer.  An elderly woman who lives in the house had oxygen tanks inside, which exploded from the fire and heat.  Everyone made it out safely, though the house is a total loss.

WIGAN, ENGLAND UK - A 77-year-old woman was today hailed a hero by Wigan firefighters when she rescued a 101-year-old from a fire. Margaret Sherwood was led to safety from her fume-filled home in Windermere Street, Whelley, when a tumble dryer caught fire. Neighbours saw smoke coming from the house and rang the fire service.  Mrs Sherwood was taken to Wigan Infirmary where she was treated for smoke inhalation.  Neighbours were alerted when a young boy on his way to school saw Margaret knocking on the window.  He informed her neighbour Mary Wilkinson, who had a key.  Mary went into the house and helped Margaret, who lives alone, out.

MYRTLE BEACH, SC - The Myrtle Beach Fire Department extinguished a dryer fire on Monday at the Blue Bay Motel, according to Assistant Chief Dan Cimini.  The fire was reported at 2:20 p.m. and put out a few minutes later at the motel located on 1402 N. Ocean Blvd., Cimini said. The dryer was located in a laundry room on the first floor of the building.  One employee suffered minor injuries, but was was not expected to be transported to a hospital, Cimini said.

MURFREESBORO, TN - A house fire that apparently started in the laundry room destroyed a home at 5918 Crab Apple Lane Sunday afternoon.  “The dryer caught fire and the house was a total loss, I’m told,” said Detective Sgt. Dan Goodwin of the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Department.  The home was the residence of Terry and Sheree McBurney who lived in the home with their three children.  The living room, kitchen, utility room and master bedroom were gutted, and the children’s bedrooms sustained water and smoke damage.

ROCHESTER, MN - Two or three people were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation after a fire broke out in the basement of a retirement home this morning, Rochester Fire Marshall Vance Swisher said.  The fire started in a dryer at Beverly Health Care and Rehab East, 501 Eighth Ave. S.E., Swisher said.  The smoke spread through the lower level, and residents there were temporarily moved.  Staff members tried to fight the fire with a fire extinguisher before firefighters arrived.  Damage was estimated at $10,000.

VISALIA, CA - Two people were treated for smoke inhalation after a dryer caught fire at an assisted living facility in southwest Visalia this morning.  Visalia firemen were called to the 3000 block of West Caldwell Avenue at about 6:17 a.m.  Firefighters had to force their way into a laundry room in the south wing of the facility, and found clothes smoldering in a commercial dryer.  Damage of about $2,600 was limited to the clothes in the dryer and the machine itself, according to a Visalia fire report.

VISALIA, CA - At 7:42 a.m., Visalia firefighters were called to a fire at 1030 S. Crenshaw St., damaging the house but causing no injuries. Three teen-age boys were home when the fire started, said neighbor Terry Seth and the boys' uncle, Malik Lee. Both said the fire started in a dryer.  The boys, whose mother was at work, smelled smoke and tracked it to the dryer.  One of the boys opened the dryer and flames leaped out.  They were able to escape without injury.  By about 8:30 a.m., firefighters were mopping up from the fire.  Charred furniture stood in the driveway and it looked like the living room had burned.

SUDBURY, ONTARIO, CANADA - Clothes and furniture destroyed in a house fire can be replaced, but pictures of a mother's four children are priceless.  "I'm having a real hard time with that - losing their baby pictures.  All the other stuff is just material stuff," said Rachelle Brown.  Brown and her four children - Victoria, 12, Matthew, 10, Lauren, 9 and Emma, 7 - were left homeless after a fire that originated in a dryer consumed her house.

NATIONAL CITY, CA - The fire at the home on Third Street, near J Avenue, was sparked by a malfunctioning dryer in the garage, said investigators from the National City Fire Department.  It caused $35,000 damage: $30,000 to the garage and $5,000 to its contents, said a spokesman for the Heartland Fire dispatching service.  The fire was reported about 11:15 a.m. Sixteen firefighters responded minutes later from National City and San Diego, with three engines and a truck, and brought the blaze under control in seven minutes.  No one was injured.

LAPEER, MI - Three long-time Dryden Township family members are displaced following an early morning dryer fire that killed six of their pet cats.  "The homeowner called it in to 9-1-1," said Dryden Township Fire Chief Ray Evans.  "She was drying clothes and her dryer started to smoke.  It spread quickly."  "We contained the fire to the kitchen and the laundry room," Evans said.  "The rest of the home had smoke and water damage."  The family was able to save their two pet dogs, but six pet cats were lost in the fire.

STUYVESANT , NY - A woman and her baseball-loving 11-year-old son died Sunday as they tried to extinguish a fire that started in a clothes dryer, authorities said.  The fire did little damage to Malea Gravlin's home, but authorities believe the smoke was enough to kill the two.  Stuyvesant Fire Chief Steve Montie said the fire started sometime between 3:30 and 4 p.m. in Malea Gravlin's one-story, wood-frame home.  Officials say it appears a dryer in the house caught fire and the two were overcome by smoke as they tried to put out the flames.

BRIDGEWATER, NJ - A dryer fire Friday in a condominium unit at Beacon Hill forced residents in surrounding units to be evacuated for awhile.  Police and fire received the call of a fire at 9:09 a.m., said Bridgewater police Lt. Jill Delin.  The fire was located on the second floor of the two- and three-bedroom townhouse units.  Delin said Bunag was taken to Somerset Medical Center for treatment of smoke inhalation.

HANOVER, PA - An elderly North Codorus township resident was treated for smoke inhalation Thursday night, after her trailer home caught fire.  At 8:33 p.m., North Codorus Township Fire Co. and the Southwestern Regional Police received a report of smoke odor coming from the home of Elizabeth Stermer, 80, of 129 Rustique Drive.  When they arrived at the home, the rear of the structure was in flames, and eventually the entire structure sustained fire and smoke damage.  It is believed the fire started in a clothes dryer vent.  Stermer escaped from her home and was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene.  A neighbor who heard the fire reported over a scanner and came to Stermer's aid was also treated for smoke inhalation.

BRIGHTON, UK - A six year-old boy saved his family from serious injury after a blaze at their home.  The lad woke up in the middle of the night just as a tumble dryer burst into flames.  When his parents were woken by the child they smelt the smoke and quickly evacuated the two storey property.  Just as they got out just after midnight today as the dryer was engulfed in flames.  Two crews from the town's Blue Watch were needed to put it out.

HOWELL, NJ - A dryer fire at the Meridian Pinewood assisted living facility temporarily displaced about 30 residents for roughly two hours at about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday because of smoke.  Sgt. Scott Wall said the residents did not actually leave the building but were taken to an adjoining portion of the structure not affected by the smoke.  A large number of emergency workers from Howell and surrounding communities responded to be available to evacuate anyone who needed to get to another location.

SIOUX CITY, IA - A TUMBLE dryer is thought to be the cause of a garage fire at a home in London Colney yesterday evening. The family of four in Kings Road were alerted to the fire by neighbours who spotted smoke billowing out the windows.  Two crews from St Albans fire station were able to stop the fire spreading to the house, but it had already caused severe damage to the garage.  No-one was hurt in the blaze, which took fire firefighters around an hour to put out.

ST. ALBANS, ENGLAND, UK - A TUMBLE dryer is thought to be the cause of a garage fire at a home in London Colney yesterday evening. The family of four in Kings Road were alerted to the fire by neighbours who spotted smoke billowing out the windows.  Two crews from St Albans fire station were able to stop the fire spreading to the house, but it had already caused severe damage to the garage.  No-one was hurt in the blaze, which took fire firefighters around an hour to put out.

GUYTON, GA - The home of Don and Sandra Lowery on Shearouse Road was destroyed in a fire last week.  Effingham County Fire and Rescue Chief Val Ashcraft said firefighters arrived shortly after 2 p.m. Jan. 2. Ashcraft said the fire began in the dryer and spread to the roof.  "I wouldn't say it burned to the ground, but with the amount of damage that was sustained to the home, it's not repairable," Ashcraft said.  According to reports, the home was not insured and was a total loss.

MEMPHIS, TN - The fire began shortly after 4:00 Wednesday morning.  Firefighters quickly put out the flames and came to the same conclusion the tenant did: that a clothes dryer sparked the fire.  Only one apartment unit was damaged by fire, but three apartments nearby were also evacuated.  Those apartments nearby also suffered minor smoke and water damage.  The leasing managers plan to relocate those displaced to other apartments on the property.

CANTON, OH - A township couple lost their home to fire Saturday afternoon when their clothes dryer ignited.  Lynn Halsey, who is due to give birth in July, said she was at work and her boyfriend, Mike Brady, and his aunt, Chris Brady, were at home when the 2 p.m. fire broke out at their singlewide mobile home.  East Sparta Fire Chief Arnold Adams said the laundry room and contents were destroyed and the remainder of the mobile home sustained heavy smoke damage.

BLACKPOOL, ENGLAND UK - Firefighters were called to a Blackpool home when a tumble dryer caught fire.  Fire crews wearing breathing apparatus went to the home on Huntley Avenue just after 2pm on Saturday.  The blaze started in the kitchen but fire fighters managed to contain it before it spread.  No one was hurt and the damage was contained to the dryer and work surfaces.

ASBURY PARK , NJ - A house fire on Asbury Avenue displaced five residents and closed a road for several hours Saturday afternoon, officials said.  A fire in a laundry dryer at 1328 Asbury Ave. was reported around 2:30 p.m., according to Asbury Park Fire Inspector Garrett M. Giberson.  The blaze, which was mainly in the rear of the house in the laundry room and kitchen, emitted heavy smoke and had started to extend to the second-floor area, he said.  Giberson said that the fire is being considered accidental, and it originated in the dryer, where the tenant was doing laundry and noticed that clothes were on fire.  The fire displaced an adult and four children, and the house will remain uninhabitable for a long time, Giberson said.

GOULDSBORO, PA - A Friday night fire destroyed a mobile home in Pocono Mobile Manor off Route 435.  No one was injured in the 6:10 p.m. fire, which started in a dryer, according to reports.  Chris and Jennifer Martinez and their four children, ages 8, 5, 4 and two weeks, were displaced.  The family was home at the time and managed to escape with the clothes on their backs, losing all else in the fire, said Anthony Crawn of East Stroudsburg, father of Jennifer Martinez.

HAMILTON, NJ - A blaze that began in the basement destroyed a house on Pintinalli Drive last night, leaving a longtime newspaper reporter and his family homeless, fire and police officials said.  Officials said it appeared to have originated in the clothes dryer.  Officials said a member of the O'Gorman family, going into the basement to do laundry, spotted flames coming from the dryer and called 911 about 5:50 p.m. Thick smoke was billowing from the one-story home and flames were leaping from the basement windows when the first firefighters arrived, officials said.  Officials said the fire and smoke damage sustained to the home had rendered it uninhabitable.

RAMONA, CA - A dryer fire, possibly caused by built-up lint, caused about $2,500 of damage to a single-family house Wednesday night, fire Capt. Don Davis said.  Five fire engines responded to the fire in the 300 block of North Hunter Drive at about 6:35 p.m., Davis said.  The fire, mostly confined to the home's laundry room, was under control by the time firefighters arrived after the homeowner doused it with a garden hose, he said.  No one was injured in the fire, and the family was allowed to stay in the house. The cause is under investigation, but Davis said it may have been started by lint that ignited in the vent hose.

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO - A Colorado Springs family is homeless after a dryer fire destroys their trailer.  The fire erupted in the home in the Lamplighter Mobile Home Park at 3280 S. Academy around 4:30 Wednesday afternoon.  Everyone inside the house was able to get out safely, but the home is a total loss.  The Colorado Springs Fire Department is still investigating, but they say the fire may have been sparked by a faulty clothes dryer.