Man ignites his house while cleaning attic

SHARPSVILLE, Pa. -- Fire Chief Andrew Totin said a man trying to clean an accumulation of bird nests from his attic accidentally set his house afire.
Robert Rice of 1001 Ridge Ave. was using a work light and inadvertently dropped the light into the nesting material, setting it on fire around 11:20 a.m. Wednesday, Totin said.
His wife, Lisa, was in the house. The couple's two sons, ages 19 and 9, were in school at the time, Totin said.
He credited Rice with containing the fire by using two of his own fire extinguishers before firefighters arrived.
The flames were confined to the attic, but the ceilings of a couple of second-floor bedrooms and a bathroom were torn down by firefighters making sure the fire hadn't spread, Totin said.
The house is insured. Hermitage firefighters assisted Sharpsville at the scene.