Published: October 26, 2009 11:01 pm      

Fire leaves East Side family homeless

Occupants not at Marion Street residence; food left on stove is cause

CUMBERLAND — A family of four was left homeless after an accidental fire heavily damaged their residence on Marion Street early Monday afternoon. No one was injured.

Roy Dye III, 30; Amy Dye, 28; Roy Dye IV, 6, and Hailey Dye, 4, were displaced by the 1:03 p.m. fire that occurred while the family was not at home, according to the Cumberland Fire Department.

The cause of the fire was attributed to food left cooking unattended on the kitchen stove, according to Deputy Chief Boyce Rogers, who investigated the incident.

Roy Dye reportedly returned to the residence about a half-hour after remembering that he had left a pot of food on the stove. However, firefighters were already working to extinguish the fire, Rogers said.

Damage to the property that was rented by the Dye family and owned by Nathan Upshur of Catonsville was described as “significant” to the two-story dwelling and its contents. The kitchen was gutted and smoke and heat damage occurred to the rest of the dwelling. The loss was estimated at up to $60,000.

The Dye family was being assisted by the American Red Cross. The family had no rental insurance to cover its loss. The property, however, was insured.

Cumberland firefighters extinguished the fire and were on the call for nearly two hours.