Randolph Family
Loses Home to Fire
By Sandy Vondrasek

A family of four was able to flee their burning Fish Hill Road home Sunday night, thanks to smoke alarms and a doorbell that suddenly, and oddly, started ringing.

Carl and Marina Aronson of Randolph and their two children lost virtually everything in the smoky and stubborn fire, which started sometime before 8:56 p.m., when Marina called in the fire from her neighbor’s home.

According to her brother-in-law Scott Aronson, she had tried dialing 911 from inside the home, but the phone cut out after she dialed the first two digits.

The fire apparently started in the basement and it is believed to have affected the wiring—therefore the ringing doorbell—before cutting off power.

Scott Aronson reported yesterday that after Carl and Marina got their children Sasha, 11, and Misha, 13, safely into a car, Marina sprinted to the neighbors, and Carl went around the house, turning off propane tanks.

"That was a great thing to do," commented Randolph Center Fire Chief Al Floyd this week.

Left on, Floyd added, the propane "could have just kept feeding the fire."

Stubborn Fire

As it was, firefighters were on scene for six hours that night, and had to return Monday, and again Tuesday, for "rekindles." The house’s cellulose insulation, the chief noted, can "hide" pockets of fire.

There were other challenges for firefighters that night, including the weather, with its wind, snow and cold.

"We would get a little handle on the fire, and it would gust up and come back," Floyd noted.

There was a long, icy driveway to navigate, Floyd said, and no good water source on site. However, thanks to a portable tank, 1100 feet of large-diameter hose, and tankers and pumpers provided by area departments, "water ended up not being a problem," Floyd said.

Brookfield, East Randolph, and Randolph Village Fire Departments assisted Randolph Center at the fire. Floyd noted that as Brookfield was just finishing a call for an I-89 accident when the Aronson fire was reported, it was able to get a tanker quickly on site, while the hose-and-pump operation was being set up.

Floyd said the Aronsons’ insurance company is still investigating the cause of the fire, which appears to have started around a propane hot water heater in the basement.

The fire came at the end of what had been a busy weekend, including a Destination Imagination competition Saturday in Burlington, where Sasha won a chance with her team to compete in this summer’s national competition.

The family is staying temporarily at the Braintree home of Scott and Tammy Aronson, while they sort out their future.

"The kids are okay," said Scott yesterday, "but absolutely devastated, as far as losing everything."

Carl was able to rescue one family cat from the smoky house Sunday night, but another family pet, a young cat, perished in the fire. This week, the family scoured the fire scene looking for salvageables, but there was extensive smoke damage, and they came away with just a few boxes of small items.

The Red Cross did provide the family with a check for $650, and clothing vouchers, and friends and community members are stepping forward with donations. At this time, the family has all the clothing they need, Scott Aronson noted.

A fund will likely be established, as the Aronsons still must make payments on their mortgage and find a rental, while they make plans to rebuild on the site.

"It’s a beautiful spot up there," Scott Aronson said.

Although the foundation and part of the house remain, the structure is likely a total loss.

"Talking to the firemen, they said when a basement gets that hot, nothing is salvageable," Scott noted.

Aronson added that his brother and family had just purchased and moved into their home this summer, after renting in the area for several years.