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Forsyth CountvNews J Your "Hometown Paper" Since 19( 306 Vol. 95, No. 56 Fire sweeps through subdivision Destroys 5 homes By Nicole Green Staff Writer Five Cumming families lost their homes after a Sunday afternoon bar becue touched off a windswept I'ire storm in Manchester Court subdivi sion off Hutchinson Road. The fire that likely started at an outdoor barbecue grill around 4 p.m. destroyed five houses on Deerborne Drive, caused heat dam age to 14 houses and burned three vehicles, Forsyth County Fire Department Chief Danny Bowman said. No injuries to any residents were reported, but a few pets remain missing. Three out of the five homes were occupied when the fire began. Eight firefighters were treated at Northside Hospital Forsyth for physical exhaustion and heat pros tration. Bowman said. They were all released Sunday night. The injured firefighters included Rick Hamilton, Jamie McPherson, Alan Kelton, Robert Fox. Scott Sibenaller. Chris Stancel, Wyatt Nix and David McWhorter. "Most of them lost two to three pounds of body weight due to fluid loss. But because they couldn't stop fighting fire for the first hour, they couldn’t replace their body fluids with water and Gatorade," Bowman said. Firefighters responded to an emergency call at 4:13 p.m. Two engines, a medical unit and a battal ion chief were dispatched for the "full alarm assignment," Bowman said, and arrived on the scene by 4:18 p.m. Residents said the first engine drove past the entrance to Manchester Court and went to the neighboring Manchester Park subdi vision Bowman said he was not aware that the driver missed his turn. Two fire hydrants malfunctioned on Deerborne Drive in front of the burning homes when firefighters tried to access water with their hoses. Bow man said. Fire hydrants are inspected by the fire department twice annually. Once the fire department submits a maintenance request to the city of Cumming Department of Utilities, it is the city's responsibility to repair the hydrant. Bowman indicated that such a request had been made. "We don't have any record any where that we ever received any notice of any fire hydrants there," Forsyth businessman eyes state Senate seat By Harris Blackwood Community Editor Forsyth County businessman Eugene E. “Chip" Pearson announced Monday that he would be a candidate for the new State Senate District 51. Pearson, who lives in Dawson County, is seeking the Republican nomination for the newly created district which includes Dawson, Pickens, Gilmer, Fannin, Union and Lumpkin Counties, along with por tions of Forsyth and White Counties. The Forsyth portion includes voters in just two precincts, Crossroads and Pleasant Grove. The seat is home to two other Missed paper policy: For a replacement paper, call 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and 9 a.m. -1 p.m. on Sunday - (770) 887-3126 Copyright C 2004 Fortyth County Now* riiiri -Jinra 1 J ■ tv• LMUR 1 M •<! Qi.Wi iiIII _Ll— . Kr US W V MA ’ ' 1 t •» r i Jr •• >i! ■'l w i km,- A ’ 1 tw' • . Br/ / ■ Bf / i ill' Photos/Audra Perry and David McGregor Above, firefighters work on Sunday to put out the remaining hot spots from the fire that swept through Manchester Court subdivision. Bottom left, Lynn Silverthorne, who said she lost all she owned in the blaze, looks at one of the few recovered items from her house on Monday. Bottom right, Caroline Barber and Ron Silverthorne help Lynn Silverthorne sort through the rubble. I * ""fIHMI ' kJ B ’■?s ’ City Administrator Gerald Blackbum said. "Any time we get information on malfunctioning or nonworking fire hydrants, that’s our top priority with our crews to get those repaired," Blackburn said. Regardless of who was responsi ble for repairing the hydrant,, resi dents in Manchester Court and sur rounding neighborhoods wen upset about the mishap. potential candidates, incumbent state Sen. Carol Jackson (D- Cleveland) who was redrawn into the district by a federal court, and state Rep. David Ralston, (R-Blue Ridge) who served in the Senate for six years before making an unsuc cessful bid for state attorney general in 1998. Ralston was elected to the House in 2002, but has been redrawn into a district with his col league, Rep. Jack White, (R-Blue Ridge). Neither Ralston nor Jackson have announced their intentions to run. Pearson is the founder, president See PEARSON, Page 3A INDEX Classifieds. 128 Deaths 2A Events 6A Horoscope 3B Legals 4B Opinion 10A Sports IB WEDNESDAY April 7, 2004 "When it comes to safety, you can't drop the ball.” said Cindy Rotton. a resident of Hutchenson Pointe subdivision whose town home backs up to Manchester Court. On Monday morning. Bowman enacted a new fire department pro cedure to monitor hydrant service requests every 30 days until the maintenance is completed. Jon Heard, director of utilities He W P I Photo/David McGregor Subdued Forsyth County sheriffs deputies subdue a man Monday morn ing after a chase. The man had threatened suicide, deputies said. They cornered the Explorer on Emerald Drive. The driver will be charged with obstruction of an officer, attempting to elude an officer and various traffic violations. He was admitted to Northside Hospital Forsyth for mental evaluation. Advice Dear Abby * dishes out good advice. Page3B 4 Jl| Opinion Columnist Bill Shipp shares his perspective of Georgia politics. Page IDA for the city, analyzed the water sys tem in Manchester Court on Monday. One of the fire hydrants was dead and the other may have low pressure, he said. By law. a hydrant may be placed a maximum of 500 feet away from any home. Heard said. Five hydrants are located within 500 feet of Sunday’s fire, he said. "Although two hydrants were in question, there were three more Possible Rain z®z High in the low 70s. Low in the low 50s. Hn.v.h nun nd u INS around it within the allowable dis tance and in working condition,” Heard said. A city water employee went to the fire on Sunday to see if he could help and was turned away by fire fighters who said the situation was under control. Heard added. Once hooked up to a hydrant, firefighters created a "water curtain” See FIRE, Page 2A Tour de Georgia will include trek through Forsyth From Staff Reports Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong will be among the com petitors vying for top honors in the second annual Dodge Tour de Georgia, which will pass through Forsyth County on the final day of competition on April 25. The sixth and final day will begin in Dawsonville at Thunder Road USA on Hwy. 53. The racers will begin a westward trek that will wind through portions of Pickens and Cherokee counties before coming into Forsyth on Hwy. 369. The tour will turn onto Hwy. 9 at See TOUR, Page 3A LAKE LANIER LEVELS Date Level April! 1069.96 ft April 3 1069.97 ft April 4 1069.96 ft Aprils 1069.96 ft Full 1071.00 ft