News Reports
Community rallies around fire victims
Published: September 10, 2005
By STARLA POINTER
 |
| Fire investigators determined that lint buildup in a
dryer vent caused the fire that destroyed a three-bedroom
manufactured home at 21889 N.E. Graham Avenue in Cove
Orchard. Tom Ballard/News-Register |
Yamhill gift shop owner Karen Darang, 30, was in critical condition Friday in the burn center at Legacy Emanuel Hospital in Portland.
Her 4-year-old son, Manuel, was listed in good condition in the same unit. Her 7-year-old daughter, Ashley, a second-grader at Yamhill Elementary School, was released from the hospital following treatment of cuts and smoke inhalation.
Darang and her son were rushed to the burn center by helicopter after fire swept their doublewide manufactured home in Cove Orchard, about three miles north of Yamhill. Her daughter was taken to the hospital by ambulance.
The children's grandmother, Barbara Ann Darang, died in the blaze. Her death was ruled accidental by the Yamhill County Sheriff's Office.
The blaze began about 11 p.m. in a dryer vent, according to the Yamhill County Fire Investigation Team and State Fire Marshal's Office.
The vent led directly under the three-bedroom unit, investigators said. They suspect heat built up in the tubing and ignited lint trapped inside.
Flames swept under the 1980s vintage home and spread to an attached wooden porch where a can of gasoline and several aerosol cans were stored. Open windows allowed the flames to reach the interior quickly and the home was reduced to rubble.
Seven family members were inside when the fire started.
Manuel, Ashley and their grandmother were asleep in a room down the hall from the laundry area. After the fire was discovered, officials said, their mother and grandmother boosted the children out a window, saving them from further harm.
Karen Darang then got out herself, but her mother-in-law was overcome. A Yamhill County sheriff's deputy tried to rescue her, but was driven back by heat, smoke and flames.
The children's father, 46-year-old Patrick Darang, escaped without injury. So did two older children, 11-year-old Sandra Darang and 13-year-old Veronica Martinez.
Sandra and Veronica are in sixth- and seventh-grade, respectively, at Yamhill Elementary.
Principal Janelle Ediger said classmates are making posters for the older girls, and Ashley's second-grade class is making sympathy and get-well cards.
The school is accepting donations on the family's behalf. Checks may be sent to the school office at 310 E. Main St., Yamhill, OR 97148.
Yamhill business owners have established a fund as well. Donations may be made to the Darang Family Trust at any branch of First Federal.
Ed Villeneuve of Aunt Hattie's Antiques said he has known Karen Darang since she opened a gift shop down the street, Special Corner, a couple years ago. She recently sold the business, planning to make a career switch into real estate, but had been helping the new owner get settled in, he said.
"She's a fun person to talk to," Villeneuve said. "She sure loves her kids."