By Zack Hoopes:
A fatal house fire on Saturday night involved what neighbors described as an explosion that reverberated throughout the area and engulfed the home near-instantaneously.
Fire crews were dispatched to the blaze at 8:13 p.m., according to the Cumberland County Department of Public Safety — but as they were arriving, a massive concussion shook the neighborhood, residents told PennLive.
Frank Spadea, who lives diagonally across from the home that burned on the 1000 block of Country Club Road, said he looked out his window and saw the fire at his neighbor’s house. Fire trucks were already on their way, Spadea said, but as they drove up the street, an explosion shot a plume of flame all the way from a ground-floor back room up to the treetops. “I no sooner saw the flames than the trucks started rolling in,” Spadea said. “I went out onto my driveway, and ‘boom.’”
The Cumberland County coroner identified Adnan Zawawi, MD, as having died in the incident. Zawawi had moved into the home relatively recently with his daughter, neighbors said; he was said to be in poor health, and his daughter was his caretaker.
Several neighbors said the explosion was so thunderous that it sounded like it was in their own backyards. One resident said he thought the propane grill on his porch had exploded, despite living on the cul-de-sac far down the street from Zawawi’s home.
“We were downstairs and we heard it in our basement,” said resident Dixie Shambaugh.
Bill and Melanie Balchunas said they had seen police racing up the street moments before they heard the explosion. Bill pulled on his coat and ran outside to find the Zawawi residence covered in flames, and fire trucks pulling up. “What I saw was a wall of flame, it was huge,” Bill said. “You couldn’t see the house, it was just a wall of fire.” The back room where Spadea said he saw the explosion is almost completely obliterated, with the roof reduced to a single charred truss. Flames had also burned through the roofs and walls on the second-story front sections of the house.
“God bless the people that do this,” Spadea said, praising the fast work of local volunteer fire crews."
A fatal house fire on Saturday night involved what neighbors described as an explosion that reverberated throughout the area and engulfed the home near-instantaneously.
Fire crews were dispatched to the blaze at 8:13 p.m., according to the Cumberland County Department of Public Safety — but as they were arriving, a massive concussion shook the neighborhood, residents told PennLive.
Frank Spadea, who lives diagonally across from the home that burned on the 1000 block of Country Club Road, said he looked out his window and saw the fire at his neighbor’s house. Fire trucks were already on their way, Spadea said, but as they drove up the street, an explosion shot a plume of flame all the way from a ground-floor back room up to the treetops. “I no sooner saw the flames than the trucks started rolling in,” Spadea said. “I went out onto my driveway, and ‘boom.’”
The Cumberland County coroner identified Adnan Zawawi, MD, as having died in the incident. Zawawi had moved into the home relatively recently with his daughter, neighbors said; he was said to be in poor health, and his daughter was his caretaker.
Several neighbors said the explosion was so thunderous that it sounded like it was in their own backyards. One resident said he thought the propane grill on his porch had exploded, despite living on the cul-de-sac far down the street from Zawawi’s home.
“We were downstairs and we heard it in our basement,” said resident Dixie Shambaugh.
Bill and Melanie Balchunas said they had seen police racing up the street moments before they heard the explosion. Bill pulled on his coat and ran outside to find the Zawawi residence covered in flames, and fire trucks pulling up. “What I saw was a wall of flame, it was huge,” Bill said. “You couldn’t see the house, it was just a wall of fire.” The back room where Spadea said he saw the explosion is almost completely obliterated, with the roof reduced to a single charred truss. Flames had also burned through the roofs and walls on the second-story front sections of the house.
“God bless the people that do this,” Spadea said, praising the fast work of local volunteer fire crews."
Renee Zawawi Personal Statement:
I am so sorry to share with you that My father, Adnan Zawawi, MD, age 76, of Camp Hill, passed away unexpectedly on the evening of Saturday, January 11, 2025, after heroically attempting to extinguish a fire that ravaged our family home.
Since he successfully completed residencies in Psychiatry and Neurology, as well as fellowships in both Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, his career would take him all over the country, but because I was born in Philadelphia, we always considered Pennsylvania our home state.
My father’s greatest joy was getting to know and spending time with his patients, especially children. Thoroughly evaluating each individual, his goal was to tailor a unique course of action that would allow his patients to achieve harmony in terms of their mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing. He also found fulfillment in the classroom, where he impacted the lives of-countless medical students as an assistant professor at Temple University. I will miss my father terribly. We will continue investigating the cause of my father's death and the cause of fire.
At this time, I would like to thank all the firefighters and first responders, police officers, Red Cross, friends, neighbors, volunteers, and family for their efforts and care. For all who have walked with me during and since this tragedy, thank you for your help throughout these difficult times.
Sincerely,
Renee Zawawi
I am so sorry to share with you that My father, Adnan Zawawi, MD, age 76, of Camp Hill, passed away unexpectedly on the evening of Saturday, January 11, 2025, after heroically attempting to extinguish a fire that ravaged our family home.
Since he successfully completed residencies in Psychiatry and Neurology, as well as fellowships in both Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, his career would take him all over the country, but because I was born in Philadelphia, we always considered Pennsylvania our home state.
My father’s greatest joy was getting to know and spending time with his patients, especially children. Thoroughly evaluating each individual, his goal was to tailor a unique course of action that would allow his patients to achieve harmony in terms of their mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing. He also found fulfillment in the classroom, where he impacted the lives of-countless medical students as an assistant professor at Temple University. I will miss my father terribly. We will continue investigating the cause of my father's death and the cause of fire.
At this time, I would like to thank all the firefighters and first responders, police officers, Red Cross, friends, neighbors, volunteers, and family for their efforts and care. For all who have walked with me during and since this tragedy, thank you for your help throughout these difficult times.
Sincerely,
Renee Zawawi
