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Claremont man dies in house fire

71-year-old mother in burn unit in Winston-Salem

Wendy Bumgarner | Hickory Daily Record

A man died in this house during a fire in Claremont on Saturday.

By Richard Gould | Hickory Daily Record

Published: November 1, 2009

CLAREMONT - Claremont firefighters think a cigarette smoked in bed ignited a deadly fire in a quiet Claremont neighborhood Saturday morning.

A strong smell of smoke hung in the air Saturday afternoon, hours after the flames had been extinguished.

Two wheelchairs sat beside a ramp leading to the back door where an orange sign read, "Keep out by order of the Catawba County Fire Marshal." Siding hung in melted ribbons and the green paint on the wooden shutters had burned off.

The call came in to the Claremont Fire Department at about 6 a.m. to report a house fire on North Church Street.

When firefighters arrived, they saw smoke and fire coming from the home, Chief Gary Sigmon said.

The first fire crew to arrive at the scene found Charles Kipling Isaac, 44, in the hallway of the house.

He was evacuated from the building and given CPR before being transported to Catawba Valley Medical Center where he died from his injuries, Sigmon said.

Firefighters found his mother, Kay P. Isaac, 71, in the living room.

She was taken from the home and given CPR. She was transported to Catawba Valley Medical Center and then transferred to the burn unit at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem.

She has burns on 30 percent of her body, but her vital signs are stable, Sigmon said.

Sigmon said the fire was brought under control quickly and the most heavily damaged area of the house was the bedroom, where the fire started.

Family members reported that Isaac was known to smoke in his bed, and the Claremont Fire Department has determined that's how the fire was ignited.

The fire has been ruled accidental.

Sigmon said he does not know if the fire triggered an alarm in the home.

He said the fire department encourages people to check the batteries in their home's smoke detectors while they're turning their clocks back for daylight-saving time and again during the switch back to standard time.