GRAFTON TWP. — A faulty wall heater may have caused a Sunday morning fire that destroyed a Grafton Township family’s home.

Cheryl and Duane Hamilton and their six children, ages 2 to 12, had left their home on state Route 57 around 9 a.m. Sunday to shop for Halloween costumes.

When they returned a short time later, Cheryl Hamilton said, there was nothing left.

“This sucks, I can’t believe this,” she said. “Our house is gone, we lost everything.”

Liz Sayers and Ralph Matjasik of Brook Park were driving around the area between Neff and Law roads looking for homes for sale when they spotted the fire around 10 a.m.

The couple pulled into the driveway and began banging on the door to see if anyone was home, said Sayers, who managed to rescue the family’s large Saint Bernard dog from the blaze.

Five local fire departments responded. Grafton Township firefighters responded to a rekindling call at the home around 4:30 p.m.

Reports from both fires were unavailable on Sunday, but a dispatcher said the fire had claimed the entire house. Family members said a wall heater may have started the fire.

Hamilton said she was thankful the Matjasiks were able to rescue their dog from the home.

“Luckily he’s OK,” she said. “He’s barking and appears fine, but sadly they didn’t know about our two birds and they died.”

The American Red Cross is helping lodge the family in a local hotel, but Cheryl’s sister, Kim Wagner, wonders how they’re going to make it.

“Everything’s gone. Their house is just a total loss,” Wagner said. “They don’t even have socks the kids can wear. They just lost everything, this is terrible.”

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