2014 house fire

“	FIRE! 2:00 AM. 911 arrived ten minutes later. Did everything they could; started downstairs; bathroom; electrical; made it to the roof. Considering EVERYTHING, but my mom, both dogs, me, and Lucy and my iPhone, shoes, clothes, whatnot on our backs made it out... Considered physically lost.	”
Chris, January 10 2014

On January 10, 2014, 14 Branchland Court, Ruckersville, Virginia was devastated by an early morning fire. Chris first mentioned it on Facebook and this was confirmed later that day when a local TV news broadcast gave a brief report on the incident.

Fire at 14 Branchland Court
Click to load content
Search for video	YouTube, archive

Order of Events

As information about the blaze is still sketchy, this chronology is a speculation of the order of events based on what knowledge is known about the fire:

• 2:00 a.m. EST: The fire begins. A local news station reporting on the blaze states the fire began around 3:00am. Chris was operating a coffee brewer in the bathroom at the time when sparks erupted from the power socket.
• 2:00-2:10: Chris evacuates the household, along with Barbara and the Chandler pets. Somewhere at this point, emergency services are called. However, it seems unlikely that this was all done within the 10 minute window from when the fire supposedly started and when the fire department arrived, especially considering how cluttered the house is. It's more likely that the fire started slightly earlier than 2:00am, and that time was when Chris called emergency services.
• 2:10: Local fire fighters arrive at the scene. It is as of yet unknown how long it took to put the blaze out, but since it was still dark by the time the news crew arrived to report on the fire (which had already been put out), it was still dark outside. (It started to get light around 6 a.m.) Therefore, we can assume it took no more than 2 or 3 hours to extinguish the blaze.
• 5:22: Chris first breaks the news about the house fire. He commented twice on the post in quick succession, lamenting the loss of personal belongings and the memories of his home, as well as stating he was able to salvage his mother's medication and his wallet. At the time of the posting, he was boarding with a generous neighbour.
• 7:10: Chris posted an angry comment on the Keurig Facebook page, producer of the coffee brewer, blaming faulty wiring in the product for creating the spark that created the fire. Chris then admitted to operating the coffee brewer within the bathroom after responding to a comment from his friend William Elliott Waterman, who vainly tried to calm Chris down and not seek vengeance so soon after the fire.
• Later: An email from Chris is released giving more information about the event. It is revealed that Chris and Barbara were allowed to enter the house and retrieve necessities for living from the house, and are currently receiving accommodation from their insurer while investigation and "repairs" are conducted. Of note is that Chris was able to retrieve his 3DS, which is still functional, giving hope to the possibility that his room may still be intact or undamaged by the blaze.

Nature of the blaze

The cause of the fire is still being investigated.

According to Chris, the fire started in the downstairs bathroom, and was of an electrical nature; most likely due to faulty wiring or from the short-circuiting of some electrical device. Chris, soon after making the initial posts, left a comment on the Facebook page of Keurig Coffee and Brewers, blaming the coffee brewer's faulty wiring for having "sparked my power socket" and starting the blaze.

Why Chris was brewing coffee at 2 a.m. in the bathroom is not yet known, but it is likely due to his "biological clock" and the piles of junk cluttering his kitchen. It is worth noting that in Chris' recent video tour of his home, coffee cups are spotted around his bathroom sink, suggesting that the bathroom has become the primary source of water.

Victims and survivors

Chris reports that he, his mother, his pet dogs Clover and Snoopy and Lucy the Cat escaped the blaze unharmed. It is unknown as of yet what has happened to the cats Scamper and Kitty; whether they were deceased prior to the blaze, or whether they were tragically lost in the fire. Many of the cats spend much of their time outdoors and could be presumed to have survived if they were alive at the time of the fire.

According to the news report, one of the firefighters suffered minor, unspecified injuries while putting out the fire. Considering how difficult it is for Chris to navigate his junk-ridden hallways it is likely in the rush to fight the fire, one firefighter may have tripped over the clutter or initiated an avalanche.

Extent of destruction

From what Chris has written so far, it can be assumed that the Chandler's escaped with little more than the clothes on their backs. Chris wrote that he was able to save his wallet, medication for his mother, as well as some clothes and shoes, as well as his iPhone. Since the fire, Chris has also been observed on Miiverse, suggesting that he also managed to save at least one of his 3DS's. The Lego High School escaped only partially melted. Chris's Facebook posts suggests that everything else is "Considered physically lost."

A troll visited the house two days after the fire, and found that while the exterior structure of the house appears largely intact, there was apparently sufficient damage to the roof that it had to be covered over with plastic cladding. Some of the exterior wood panelling had also warped and twisted, presumably due to being near where the fire was burning at its strongest, though due to the house's exact layout being unknown it's hard to say where exactly this was. The house's windows had been boarded over (as is standard in house fires of this kind), making it impossible to get any exact details on the house's interior condition.

Until more information is released, we can assume that anything else in 14 Branchland Court was destroyed by the flames, including all of the original Sonichu comics and Chris's other art, Chris's "Classic" shirt, the Wall of Originals, Megatron pistol, Sailor Moon Poster, the portal to CWCville, the Attraction Signs, the Heart Torch, the Plush Breasts and Bob's records.

If the damage to 14 Branchland Court is enough for it to be condemned, this could be a chance for the Chandler family to abandon the shackles of their horded possessions. Letting go of his items of comfort could enable Chris to start a new life, encouraging him to turn his back on the past. But knowing Chris' track record for making life-changing decisions, it is likely he will re-purchase most of his prized possessions and mope for the next year over the loss of his comics.