A plant heating pad used to shelter rescued cats in a boat parked at a Joppa home ignited a blaze Wednesday afternoon which heavily damaged the structure, fire officials said.
According to the State Fire Marshal’s Office, the owner of a home in the 700 block of Shore Drive in Joppatowne reported the fire at approximately 1:46 p.m. Wednesday.
The home’s owner discovered the fire in the 22-foot Angler boat after they smelled smoke while inside. The owner attempted to extinguish the blaze with two kitchen fire extinguishers, but was unable to stop it from spreading to their house. A total of 40 firefighters from the Joppa-Magnolia, Abingdon, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Kingsville, and White Marsh fire companies brought the fire under control in approximately 20 minutes.
Investigators traced the fire to plant heating pad in the boat’s cabin which was being used to warm cats and kittens rescued by the home’s owners from the surrounding neighborhood. The pad suffered an electrical malfunction, igniting the blaze.
Damages to the home and boat were estimated at $200,000, while damages to their contents were estimated at $25,000, according to the State Fire Marshal’s Office. Friends and family are assisting the home’s owners.
What about the cats? This is an expensive lesson to learn that hoarding cats in a boat should not have been done. Take them to a shelter and donate money, food and or your time instead of trying to be a superhero.
My hubby and me took several months to teach a feral cat to accept food, water and love from us. When we saw a fox coming around our house daily, we took our “Bushy” inside and slowly tried to add him to our 3 indoor cats. Unfortunately, it didn’t work. So, with reluctance we put him in our carrier up to the Fallston Animal Shelter. He was a beautiful Siamese-type white cat with blue eyes, not quite 1 yr old and we were sure someone would adopt him. Well, he didn’t even get a chance. After two weeks of searching daily for his photo on their website “adoption” page, I never saw Bushy. So I finally drove to the shelter to ask about him. He had been euthanized within the first day or two and therefore no photo was ever posted. Do NOT take a cat to this shelter. Try PetSmart, or newspaper ads first. I will never support that shelter with anything.
Feral cats are a big problem in Joppatowne, you can’t put trash on the curb unless it is in a locked can or the cats will rip open the bags.
Wow, we didn’t have that problem growing up in J-towne. I live in the city now and we deal with rats and cats. Good old fashion metal cans with lids are the best. Haven’t had a problem for a couple years now. Good Luck.
Speaking about cats, how about big cats commonly called cougar, puma, mountain lion?
Has anyone across Harford Co, recently or anywhere in the last 5 years, seen 1 of these big cats?? If so, please reply to this inquiry at epuma@frontier.com Thanks….
Hi John,
I’ve been looking too. Nothing I’ve heard recently, though coyotes are more commonplace in Harford now.