Jim Croce Items Lost in S.D. Fire
An early-morning fire Tuesday swept through the first floor of the home of the widow of singer Jim Croce, destroying gold records, albums, photos, guitars and other mementoes.
Ingrid Croce and her teen-age son, A.J., escaped injury after they were awakened by the smoke alarm in their two-story Hillcrest home at 12:33 a.m., Fire Department spokeswoman Ida Cheney said.
She said she and her son were redecorating the house at Pennsylvania Avenue and 1st Street and moving furniture from room to room when they decided to place the late singer’s personal memorabilia atop the floor furnace in the living room.
She later turned on the heater, apparently having forgotten that it was covered, Cheney said. Firefighters responded to the home and found the first floor of the home engulfed in flames.
Croce and her son attempted to escape by coming downstairs from their bedrooms but were driven back by the fire, Cheney said. They went back up to the master bedroom and escaped through the balcony.
About 25 firefighters responded to the blaze.
“The fire was put out rather quickly,” Cheney said. Damage to the home’s contents was estimated at $200,000, and damage to the structure was estimated at $100,000.
Jim Croce and five others were killed in a plane crash at Natchitoches, La., in 1973.
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