Crime & Safety

Cause of House Fire Officially 'Undetermined'

An extension cord, however, could not be ruled out as contributing to the fire, officials said.

Fire officials deemed the cause of Tuesday’s  as "undetermined."

The two-story home at 211 Lenni Road in Media was a total lose with heavy fire, smoke and water damage. The fire call came in at about 11 a.m. Tuesday and was officially placed under control by 12:57 p.m.

No one was home at the time of the fire and no one was injured in the incident. However, three pet cats were unaccounted for Tuesday.

Find out what's happening in Mediawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Middletown Township Fire Investigator Allen Mancill said Wednesday that two of the cats were found dead and the third is still unaccounted for.

Mancill said the official cause of the fire was deemed "accidental-undetermined" because there is no specific evidence that would determine an official cause of the fire.

Find out what's happening in Mediawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

However, Mancill said, an extension cord in the back corner room of the house may have contributed to the fire.

"It can’t be completely ruled out," he said.

The fire started on the first floor, in the rear of the house, Mancill said, and spread throughout the house pretty quickly.

"It was a totally loss," he said. 

Jim and Helen Kain are the owners of the house and were called by neighbors while they were each at work and told their house was on fire. 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.