New Year's Eve fire leaves elderly woman homeless

An elderly Carbon county woman is homeless after a devastating fire destroyed her home in Lower Towamensing Township on New Year's Eve.

The fire was first reported just before 8 p.m. at the home of Marie Gemeinhardt at 1200 Hahn's Dairy Road. Gemeinhardt managed to escape the quick-moving flames but lost everything in the inferno.

Gemeinhardt, who said she recently lost her husband, stated that she had an electrical ceramic heater as a supplemental heating source in her bedroom

She reportedly left her room for a short period of time and when she returned the bed was on fire.

When fire fighters from Carbon and Northampton counties arrived on scene, the two-story wood frame dwelling was fully involved in flames. Due to the remote location of the site, water had to be tanked into the scene.