Cigarette sparks fire at Fort Mill home; items from Prince, Whitney Houston lost

An accidental fire last week destroyed the home and music mementos from tours with Prince and Whitney Houston of award-winning photographer Jeff Sochko.

The March 20 fire, on Anchura Road south of Carowinds in northern York County, not far from the North Carolina state line, was accidental, said David Jennings, chief of the Flint Hill Fire Department.

The fire started on the front porch, apparently from a still-smoldering cigarette a visitor stubbed out in a flower pot, then spread to the exterior of the home, then inside, Jennings said.

Firefighters from Steele Creek in North Carolina and Tega Cay also responded to the fire.

Investigators from the York County Fire Marshal’s Office said the fire started with carelessly discarded smoking materials, said Trish Startup, York County spokesperson.

No one was home at the time, and no one was hurt, but neighbors smashed a door and windows to get Sochko’s three dogs out of the house, Jennings said.

Sochko thanked the people who saved his dogs and other neighbors who rushed to help.

“The neighbors were awesome, and did all they could,” Sochko said.

Some items from Sochko’s time touring with Prince, Whitney Houston, Stevie Nicks and others were damaged, Sochko said. Sochko also lost some of his camera equipment and photos, prints and other items from decades of chronicling entertainers and musicians. Some of the irreplaceable items included tour jackets, a Hammond B-3 organ and two vintage motorcycles.

Sochko was the light man during Prince’s Purple Rain tour, and for Whitney Houston later in the 1980s. He has also volunteered lighting and other services for local high school stage productions.

The S.C. Press Association honored Sochko March 18 with top honors for photo submissions to the Fort Mill Times.

Tuesday morning, he spent time picking through rooms, looking for what he could salvage. Downstairs, water dripped from the ceiling in spots and pooled where there were hard surfaces. The carpeting in the living room was like a saturated sponge.

After spending the night in his truck parked outside his home, Sochko, a native of Minnesota and a longtime Fort Mill resident whose children attended Fort Mill schools, was still trying to figure out his next move. His insurance agent arrived around noon to start going over his options.

This story was originally published March 21, 2017 at 11:13 AM with the headline "Cigarette sparks fire at Fort Mill home; items from Prince, Whitney Houston lost."