Jeannette police officer saves mom, artwork from house fire

Renatta Signorini, Tribune-Review, Greensburg, Pa.
Updated ·2 min read

Apr. 10—Chris Mason bought a 1965 AC Cobra replica two years ago, a car he has dreamed about owning since he was 15.

The Jeannette police corporal said he stopped by his mother's home in the city Monday around 2 p.m. to fire up the engine for the first time since the fall.

"I started it, I heard a pop, I saw a flash on the side of the garage wall," he said.

He noticed fuel on the ground and searched quickly for a fire extinguisher. With his mother upstairs, he gave up and raced to get her out of her Agnew Road house while the flames quickly spread.

Jeannette fire Chief Bill Frye said firefighters were met with a large column of black smoke. A carport that extended over the driveway quickly collapsed and a power line was pulled to the ground.

"We arrived to find that the fire had already extended into the house ... approximately two minutes from dispatch," he said.

The Cape Cod-style home with a rear addition had a lot of hidden spots and voids that firefighters spent time checking to make sure the flames did not spread. The entire house has smoke damage, but flames were contained to the basement and one interior first-floor wall, Frye said.

"Both the city crews and our mutual aid partners from the surrounding municipalities were able to get in really quick and get it all put out," he said.

A state police fire marshal is investigating the cause.

After firefighters got the flames under control, Mason went inside with Frye to grab an early work by Native American artist Rance Hood. The painting depicts a wolf near a Native American burial site, Mason said.

His mother purchased the painting for about $200 in the late 1960s without knowing the significance of the artist. Hood learned the Comanche ways of life from his family in Oklahoma and is one of few artists who adheres to traditional Native American painting style, according to his website.

It was an important piece to save from the home, especially after communicating with Hood and learning the value of it, Mason said.

"That's just been in the family forever," he said. "It'll never be sold. It'll stay in the family."

Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Renatta by email at rsignorini@triblive.com or via Twitter .