Man dies in house fire on Bringle Ferry Road

Salisbury Assistant Fire Marshal Doug Stevens, Fire Chief Bob Parnell and Capt. Jeff Youngblood stand outside the scene of a house fire on Bringle Ferry Road near Long Street on Wednesday afternoon. The Fire Department found a man had perished in the home. Photo by Steve Huffman, Salisbury Post.

Salisbury firefighters stand outside the scene of a house fire on Bringle Ferry Road near Long Street on Wednesday afternoon. A man died in the home. Photo by Steve Huffman, Salisbury Post.

By Steve Huffman

shuffman@salisburypost.com

An elderly Salisbury man died Wednesday afternoon in a house fire on Bringle Ferry Road.

Salisbury Fire Chief Bob Parnell said the call for help came at 4:03 p.m. after someone noticed smoke coming from the aged structure.

The man's body was found inside, Parnell said.

The house at 510 Bringle Ferry Road, near its intersection with Long Street, is beside the former home of Power Curbers.

No fire or smoke was showing from the structure about 30 minutes after firefighters arrived.

Firefighters used a ladder and ax to break an upstairs window.

Parnell said the victim's identity wouldn't be released until next of kin were notified.

Wednesday night, Parnell said the cause of the fire hadn't been determined and Salisbury Police were investigating.

"It's not ruled suspicious, it's not ruled accidental. It's still under investigation," Parnell said.

The old house was obviously once beautiful, but has long appeared to be in need of repair. Its exterior paint is so worn that the house now appears gray.

Mary Houston said she lives in the 500 block of Bringle Ferry Road, on the opposite side of the street from the site of the fire.

She said at first she wondered if the house was abandoned based on its rundown appearance.

Houston said the elderly man who lived there would wave on occasion, but had had little contact with her in the 14 years she'd lived in the neighborhood.

"I don't know of any family he had," Houston said. "He just sort of kept to himself."

Ethel James, another resident of the neighborhood, said much the same. She said she was told the man was a veteran, but didn't know which branch of the military he served. "He lived by himself as far as I know, but he was nice," she said.