Members of the Whitman Fire Department work to extinguish a house fire on Corthell Avenue Monday morning, March 23. (Photo courtesy Whitman Fire Department) 
Members of the Whitman Fire Department work to extinguish a house fire on Corthell Avenue Monday morning, March 23. (Photo courtesy Whitman Fire Department)
WHITMAN — Chief Timothy J. Grenno reports that the Whitman Fire Department extinguished a house fire on Corthell Avenue Monday morning.
At approximately 10:45 a.m., the Whitman Fire Department received a report of a house fire at 88 Corthell Avenue.
Upon arrival, firefighters observed light smoke coming from the exterior of the 1.5-story wood frame single-family home.
Firefighters from the East Bridgewater and Halifax fire departments responded to the scene to assist.
Firefighters quickly knocked down the flames and extinguished the fire. Holes had to be cut into the exterior of the building in order to prevent any flames from spreading inside the walls.
The house is occupied by two adults and one child and the family will be able to remain in the home.
The initial investigation indicates that the fire started after a resident turned off an outdoor space heater on a first floor deck and then slid the heater up against the exterior wall. Despite the heater being turned off, the radiant heat it was emitting was hot enough to ignite the wooden siding on the house.
A neighbor saw the smoke and notified the resident and 911 was called.
“Despite this resident turning his heater off, it was still hot enough to start a fire up against the side of the house,” Chief Grenno said. “Always keep space heaters at least three feet away from all walls. Thankfully no one was injured and responding crews did a great job of quickly knocking the fire down before it spread further.”
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