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Arson has not been ruled out as a cause of the fire which early yesterday morning raced through a house at 722 Leiper Street in the city, claiming the lives of a city man and his son.- Michael K. Morrissey, 30, and his son, Matthew, 6, died in the blaze. Seriously injured and transported to the Baltimore City Hospital Burn Center was Mrs. Cynthia Morrissey, 30. Last night she was listed in “critical” condition, having sustained second and third degree burns over a large portion of her body.. James Martin and Robert H. Shimer, fire investigators for Allegany and Garrett counties, spent the day at the scene Last night, Martin noted the cause remains undetermined, however, arson has not beenMICHAEL K. MORRISSEYruled out.The fire is reported by Martin to have begun in theMATTHEW JOSEPH MORRISSEYfront hallway of the first floor. Martin described the blaze as a “fast fire,” notingit raced through the structure, destroying it. He added a witness at the scene noted the flames that leaped from the structure were orange in color.Allegany County Civil Defe .se received numerous calls on the ‘911’ line concerning the blaze. Cumberland firemen went to the scene about 2 a.m. and found the entire building in flames.Among those who called Civil Defense was Willis Rice, a resident of 715 Leiper Street. Reportedly,Rice’s 14-year-old daughter, Marsha, heard Mrs. Morrissey calling the names of the children. The girl awakened her parents, who found the Morrissey home in flames, and notified Civil Defense.City Firemen fpund thebody of the father in a middle room on the first floor and the body of the sonat the top of the stairway onthe second floor The young boy’s head was reportedly against the wall and he was found in a crouched position. City firemen theorized the child had tried to flee, but was trapped by dense smoke and intense heat.Mrs. Morrissey is reported to have escaped through an upstairs window onto the porch roof. She lowered her three-year-old daughter Meredith to a high bush growing alongside ofthe house, a neighbor reported. Mrs. Morrissey is reported to have then reentered the house to find Matthew The family’s dog also died in the fire.Martin said he sooke with(Continued On Page 11)
Newspaper Details
Cumberland News
Cumberland, Maryland, US
Fri, May 29, 1981
Page 30
Full Page
Clipped by
Julie W.
USA 14 Jun 2020
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