The Mondes were in Mason, about to stop for food, when a friend of their son called around 2 p.m. to tell them about the blaze.
“He said, ‘You know your house is on fire?’ ” Don Monde said. “I thought he was joking.”
Lovelace said the fire is under investigation but appears to have started on the floor of the Monde’s kitchen. He did not believe household appliances played a role in the fire’s start.
Damages were estimated at $10,000 and although crews extinguished the fire before it had the chance to spread, the Mondes were told they would be unable to stay in their home on Saturday.
Marcia shook her head when asked about the fire’s suspicious start.
“I work and he’s retired,” said Marcia, 51, pointing to her 61-year-old husband. “We don’t have enemies ... We go out to eat and go to the casino. That’s all we do.”
She wiped a tear from her eye as she looked at her home Saturday afternoon.
“That’s our home,” she said. “That’s all we have.”
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2871 or asedlak@coxohio.com.
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