They're Not Breathing! Firemen Rescue Three From Blaze

BY JOHN PATTERSON
SALISBURY POST

Salisbury firefighters literally breathed the life back into a 33-year-old woman, her husband and their 2-year-old daughter after the family's Second Street home caught fire Tuesday night.

In what Asst. Chief Rick Fesperman called "a concerted effort by all emergency agencies involved," firefighters revived each member of the Marlin family - Sylvia, Kendall and their daughter, Paula - on the front lawn of their house, located at 1831 Second St. None of the three were breathing when firefighters located them inside the house around 8:40 p.m. Tuesday.

"We had to knock down enough of the fire to get into the house ... we found the father (Kendall Marlin) and the baby (Paula) in the hallway and we found the mother (Sylvia Marlin) in a rear bedroom,"

Fesperman said. "The first firefighters to reach them indicated that they weren't breathing."

Sylvia Marlin and Paula were listed in critical but stable condition this morning at Duke University Medical Center in Durham. Kendall Marlin, 29, was also taken to Duke Medical Center, but has been moved to the burn unit at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill. His condition was unavailable this morning.

Investigators believe a wood stove is to blame for Tuesday's fire, which gutted most of the rear of the house.

"It appeared that the fire began around the wood stove, which was located in the living area," Fesperman said. "The heat from that spread to a book case and then to the furniture and then onto the wall. It (fire) spread pretty quickly ... there was no indication that it was a long, smoldering type of fire."

Investigators have not yet been able to talk with the Marlin family, so it was unclear this morning whether the family was asleep or not when they were overcome by smoke. However, Fesperman said there was no smoke detector in the house.

"Apparently they might have been asleep," Fesperman said. "This is a case where we just have to encourage everyone - again - to have at least one working smoke detector in their home.

"A working smoke detector, even if they're asleep, would give them a pretty good indication that something's wrong. As quickly as they (smoke detectors) activate, it would have given them a lot of time to get to safety."

Kendall Marlin's brother, Corey, apparently saw the fire from his house across the street. Corey Marlin ran over to his brother's house, trying to summon anyone inside. When he couldn't get anyone to come to the door, he called 911.

Corey Marlin, who was obviously upset, refused to leave the area just around the burning house when firefighters arrived. When asked to move off the property, he allegedly struck a Salisbury firefighter.

Salisbury Police, who witnessed the event, later charged Corey Marlin with misdemeanor assault on a government official. He was released on a written promise to appear in court Jan. 4.

Fesperman said he understood that Corey Marlin was upset, but that firefighters were trying to move him back "for his own safety."

"Our job is ensure the safety of all those at the scene," Fesperman said. "I know he (Corey Marlin) was upset about what was happening ... this type of incident has happened before at other fire scenes.

I don't think it's something that we're going to really make a big deal about."

Meanwhile, Fesperman said there was no doubt the combined effort of all the emergency agencies involved "saved three lives out there."

"I just want to commend the efforts of everyone involved," Fesperman said. "Emergency Medical

Services and the Rescue Squad were there ... it was just a concerted effort by all the agencies involved.

"I think that, thanks to all of them, Thanksgiving might be a little nicer for their relatives."