This is an unofficial report of two fires on 5/12/96. While neither was more than a single alarm, I thought they might be of interest.
At 04:59 AM, Atlanta FD was dispatched to a fire at 1069 McMillian St, near Roslyn St, with report of entrapment. They found a one story frame house well involved in the front. There were four people from house, who had been helped outside by a police officer. All five were transported for smoke inhalation.
At 05:19 AM, Atlanta FD was dispatched to a reported structure fire at the corner of Peachtree St & 10th St, the Margaret Mitchell house. The first due Engine, Ladder & Battalion Chief would normally respond from Station 15, only 2 blocks to the East on 10th Street. They were all working the fire on McMillian St, which runs off 10th street approximately 15 blocks West of this alarm.
The Division 1 Chief had responded to the McMillian St fire earlier, and immediately started for Peachtree & 10th as part of the first alarm response. He was first on the scene, had heavy flames showing on second floor of a large three story brick & frame house that was under restoration. As he walked around the house, other floors flashed into flames, and the house became fully involved. They went to defensive mode, operating 1 ladder pipe, 1 Stinger, 2 deluge guns. It took about an hour to control the fire. The interior of the house is about 80% destroyed, the 2nd & 3rd floors have caved in.
The Margaret Mitchell house is actually a house which was divided into apartments many years ago. Margaret Mitchell and her husband lived in one of the apartments. It was there that she wrote "Gone with the Wind", published in 1936. The house had been vacant for a number of years, with little interest in restoring it until about four or five years ago. A group had raised the money to buy the property and was working to finance the restoration when the house was heavily damaged in 1994 by an early morning fire of suspicious origin.
The Daimler-Benz Corp. stepped forward to fund a multi-million dollar complete reconstruction and restoration, which has been underway for over year, with completion scheduled prior to the Olympics. I'm sure there were plans to have receptions & parties there during the Olympics.
The Margaret Mitchell house fire today has been ruled as "Suspicion of Arson, under investigation". Both the Chief and the first-in crews noticed a strong smell of gasoline coupled with the sudden flashovers. There are also pour patterns on the inside of the house, indicating a flammable liquid was used. In addition, the crew from Station 15 had observed nothing as they passed the site en route to the McMillian St fire less than 20 minutes earlier.
The house on McMillian St had a very overgrown yard, which gave the appearance of a vacant or abandoned house. Since the fire reportedly started on the front porch, it may have been set to draw the 1st due equipment away from the prime target at 10th & Peachtree. The fires could be entirely unrelated, although the timing and circumstances seem suspicious.
Bill Delmar, Fire Buff
Atlanta, GA
(Editor's note: Mr. Delmar advises us that he is not speaking on behalf of any official agency and that this "unofficial" report is based upon his personal knowledge and experience in observing Atlanta Fire Dept. operations. He recommends contacting the Atlanta Fire Department for official statements regarding these incidents)