Mid-Morning Blaze Destroys Dwelling On Laurel Park Road

Fire investigators are still trying to determine the cause of a fire Friday morning that completely gutted a large three-story, wood-frame home on Laurel Park Road across from Dogwood Lane. The home was owned by Lou Balestrier.
Blowing Rock fire fighters were called to Laurel Park Road when a neighbor reported seeing smoke coming from a house across the street. Within minutes a police officer nearby confirmed that the house was fully involved in flames.
Within minutes the smoldering fire had broken through the walls and roof of the back side of the house and flames were leaping hundreds of feet into the air. Smoke rolled from the windows on the front side of the dwelling, which was empty at the time of the fire.
Five minutes after the first truck arrived, firemen had set up hose lines and were fighting the fire. A number of construction workers in the area assisted in laying hose and putting water on the fire. As other units from Blowing Rock arrived the attack on the fire was expanded, not only surrounding the house with suppression efforts, but one team actually made entry into the burning house, knocking down a massive wall of flames coming from the view side of the house.
Capt. Kent Graham, who was in command of the scene, called for an additional unit and manpower from Boone.
Some twenty minutes into the fire attack, fire fighters had the blaze under control, although spot fires were still burning from dozens of spots along the back of the house and a porch extended from the middle floor.
From a roaring inferno to smoldering remains, the attack from fire fighters was swift and effective. A number of construction workers working in the neighborhood of the fire, a number of them members of other regional fire departments, said Blowing Rock did an exceptional job in knocking down the fire.
“It was just like the manual draws it up,” said a Banner Elk fire fighter. “They did a hell of a job. It was organized and aggressive, and that was what the situation demanded. I can’t believe there is still walls standing because the fire was so widespread and intense.”
Once the heavy flames had been knocked down, teams began entering the charred remains of the house and focusing on smaller fires in what rooms remained. Even while the fire smoldered from one end to the other, Blowing Rock investigators were looking for the cause of the fire.
The owner, who reportedly was not in town at the time of the fire, was notified, however it was the next day before authorities were able to talk to him about the fire.
As fire fighters were moping up and securing the fire scene, units from the Watauga Fire Marshall’s office, an Arson Investigation unit of the State Bureau of Investigation’s Hickory office, an SBI Arson Canine team out of Asheville, and independent insurance investigators, arrived on the scene and began their investigation.
The investigators remained on the scene long after dark, and returned the next morning at daybreak. A police guard was stationed at the site throughout the night to protect the scene for investigators.
“What we’re doing is something we do at every serious fire,” said Fire Chief Dennis Bolick. “It’s standard procedure for us to bring in professionals to determine the cause of the fire, especially one this serious,” he said.
A unit from the Blowing Rock Rescue Squad remained on the scene throughout the attack, however there were no fire fighters injured
The house, which was listed by a local Real Estate company as being for sale, had just been renovated in the spring of 2006.
The house and property were valued at $2.2 million, according to the latest Real Estate listing. Fire reports listed the house as a total loss.