1 badly burned, 2 left without a home after Montford house fire

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — One person was hurt after a home went up in flames in North Asheville early Friday morning, according to fire officials on the scene.

Emergency officials say a call came in around 12:30 a.m. about a fire on Pearson Drive.

Neighbors in Asheville’s Montford neighborhood rally around the victim, who suffered severe burns when flames engulfed the home Thursday night.

Asheville fire officials say the burn victim is now on his way to the Wake Forest Burn Center.

Neighbors seeing the unrecognizable home in daylight for the first time, and those who caught a glimpse before sunrise, say their only concern is for the victim.

"I hope he heals and gets through this," said one neighbor, Betsy Pappas. "I hope both of the young gentlemen that live there can. We are a tight-knit neighborhood that likes to stick together."

We’re learning how tightly knit this community is. We spoke to several people living on Pearson Street, all of whom were concerned for the well-being of their neighbor.

"They are just struggling working boys, trying to make it check to check, and this is going to hit them really hard," said Kirstin Sherryl, another neighbor.

On Friday, an Asheville fire marshal sweeps through what’s left of the home, investigating what ignited the flames that charred bricks, demolished sliding and blackened window frames.

The fire burned with such heat that it melted the gaskets on a gas line. Dominion crews were also on the scene Friday morning, but fire officials say they’ve ruled out a gas leak as the reason for the blaze.

At this point, they say it appears to have started accidentally.

Three different people we spoke to say firefighters responded quickly, dousing flames in under five minutes.