Owner Hospitalized In Residential Fire

BERLIN — A residential fire destroyed a Berlin home and sent its owner to the hospital last week.

Around 11:40 p.m. last Thursday, firefighters from Berlin, Showell, Bishopville, Newark, Ocean Pines and Snow Hill responded to a reported house fire at a residence on Bethel Road in Berlin. First-arriving firefighters found the two-story residential structure completely engulfed in flames.

It took the combined fire departments over an hour to bring the blaze under control. According to the Worcester County Fire Marshal’s Office, the owner and occupant of the residence awoke to the smell of smoke and was able to escape prior to the fire department’s arrival. Nonetheless, the owner and occupant was transported to Atlantic General Hospital for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation.

According to the fire marshal’s office, there was no smoke alarm activation and the home was not equipped with a residential sprinkler system.

The cause of the fire was still under investigation by the Worcester County Fire Marshal’s Office as of midweek. Anyone with information is urged to contact the fire marshal’s office at 410-632-5666, or email Chief Deputy Fire Marshal Matt Owens at [email protected], or the Maryland Arson Hotline at 1-800-492-7529.

About The Author: Shawn Soper

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Shawn Soper has been with The Dispatch since 2000. He began as a staff writer covering various local government beats and general stories. His current positions include managing editor and sports editor. Growing up in Baltimore before moving to Ocean City full time three decades ago, Soper graduated from Loch Raven High School in 1981 and from Towson University in 1985 with degrees in mass communications with a journalism concentration and history.