'It shattered me,' homeowner says after seeing fire damage at Vale home

CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. — Investigators in Catawba County are trying to figure out what started a house fire in Vale early Wednesday morning.

Five different departments from Catawba and Lincoln counties responded to the fire on Lynn Mountain Road just before dawn.

"It shattered me," said homeowner Jennifer Bowman after she saw the damage done to her home.

Bowman was not at home at the time but did have several surveillance cameras mounted around the home because of previous break-ins.

The cameras were destroyed by the intense heat and flames, but investigators said they did recover a recording of the video in another area of the house. They believe it could help them determine if someone had gone inside the home prior to the fire.

"It's awfully ironic that it started and happened when no one was home," Bowman said. "I just hope whoever did it is brought to justice."

Damage is estimated in the tens of thousands of dollars.

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