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Washington County Chapter of the American Red Cross:

Cash donations are needed.

The family is not in a position at this time to accept donations of furniture or appliances.

For more information: 373-0281.

GRANDVIEW TOWNSHIP - A faulty furnace is suspected of touching off an early Tuesday morning fire near New Matamoras that killed a 50-year-old mentally handicapped man and left his elderly parents homeless, according to fire officials.

The 15050 County Road Nine home was destroyed by the 4:18 a.m. blaze, except for a charred corner that stood above a concrete block garage. It was the area of the home where firefighters concentrated their efforts after learning Barry Ward may have still been sleeping inside.

Ward's body was recovered around 9 a.m. His parents, Kenneth and Mary Ward, both 78, were transported from the scene to Selby General Hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation and minor burns. They were treated and released and plan to take temporary shelter with a daughter who lives in the area, according to an official with the Washington County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

The family had no insurance.

"We provided them with some assistance to (go to a local retailer) and buy some clothing and food," said Ed Reno, director of disaster services for the local Red Cross. "They lost everything, and they're going to need a lot of help. But they're not in a position to receive any bedding or furniture or anything like that. At this point, I don't think they're in a position to say what they're going to do yet."

Reno said the family indicated a furnace may have been responsible for the fire.

Shane Cartmill, spokesman for the Ohio Fire Marshal's Office, said the cause of the fire remains under investigation; however, he said a heating source is suspected.

"A heating source is likely," Cartmill said. "We have not been able to confirm that as a cause, but it would not surprise me. As we begin to turn on our furnaces for the first time, we do see an increase in this type of fire."

Assistant Grandview Fire Chief James Addlesburger said the home was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived. He said the home's construction and distance from a water source hampered the efforts of firefighters.

"It was a single-wide (mobile home) that had been added on to," Addlesburger said. "It had a tin roof, and we just couldn't get under the tin to get to the fire."

Tanker trucks from several area departments were called to help haul water from hydrants at Frontier High School to the home, located about five miles away.

"We were short of water at first, but once we got some more help and got the drop tanks set up, we did all right," Addlesburger said.

Jeffrey Cline, a 30-year member of the Grandview department, said most members of the department knew the Ward family.

"They're well known and well thought of around here," Cline said. "They always helped us out with our fundraisers and our deepest sympathies go out to their family."

Cline said the fatality was only the second he knew of in the history of the department.