Edward McKinley Childers, 35 from Beersheba Springs in Grundy County was arrested after a fire broke out at the Econo Lodge Inn and Suites, 33 Paradise St. in Manchester on Thursday night around 8pm. The fire occurred in room 200.
Edward McKinley Childers
When the Manchester Fire Department arrived, they found the room full of smoke. Firemen were about to begin to search the room and discovered the door was locked from the inside. Firefighters took out the window to the room and attacked the fire from the outside, according to Manchester Fire Rescue Chief George Chambers. One male occupant was located face down on the bed. Engine 607 Officer Sherman White, Firefighter Tyler Bradshaw and Firefighter Andrew Floied scooped up the occupant and removed him from the room. They handed the occupant to Engine One Officer Tyler Hickerson who quickly began accessing the occupant’s condition. The man was transported by Coffee County EMS to Unity Hospital for evaluation.
Childers was charged on Friday with one count of aggravated arson and one count of vandalism and was booked into Coffee County Jail under a $51,000 bond, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
