SUV destroyed in Henderson garage fire

HENDERSON — After cutting himself while sawing wood Wednesday afternoon, Alexander W. James, 67, left a shop vacuum running unattended in his garage at 7056 Hovey Cove Lane to attend to his injury.

Returning a few minutes later, he found the two-story, two-stall garage on fire, according to a Jefferson County fire investigator. The structure was extensively damaged, and destroyed inside the structure were his 2001 Ford Explorer and numerous tools.

Mr. James’s cut on his hand was not serious, said the investigator, Roger E. Brunet. When Mr. James left the garage before the fire, he turned off an electrical switch, but that did not cut power to the vacuum, Mr. Brunet said. It is believed that sawdust or hot debris from a pellet stove came into contact with the vacuum and ignited, he said.

The structure is insured. Henderson, Smithville and Belleville firefighters responded to the 2 p.m. alarm.