Straight news story:

A Daily News Journal photographer is in fair condition at Middle Tennessee Medical Center after suffering injuries as he was trying to take photographs of a house fire this morning.

No was home at the time of the fire, but Don Kerlinger suffered minor burns and bruises as he was trying to shoot photos, said Gus Riley, executive editor of the newspaper. Falling timbers hit Kerlinger.

“Don’s going to be fine,” Riley said. “I just returned from the hospital, and Don just wanted to be sure we had some photos of the fire.”

Murfreesboro Fire Inspector Allison Johnson said the cause of the fire that completely destroyed the house at 716 Ruppert St. in the Woodland Lake subdivision still is under investigation.

“Early indications are that it was something electrical, but it will take a thorough investigation to confirm that,” Johnson said.

Homeowner Janice Mason said the family has full insurance coverage. Records of the Rutherford County property’s assessor’s office state that the house has a value of more than $150,000.

George Mason, Janice Mason’s husband, is vice president of First Trust Bank, and she is a real estate agent at Cornerstone Realty. The Masons have two children, Amy, 12, and Jonathan, 10.

“I am just glad the children were in school” Janice Mason said. “George and I both were at work.”

Janice Mason said a neighbor called the fire department when she first noticed the smoke, but “she didn’t see it until the fire was pretty far along.

Three fire engines battled the fire for more than an hour.

Janice Mason said her family plans to stay with relatives while they consider their options.

DNJ Executive Editor Riley said Kerlinger will be out of the office for a few days, but “he’s planning to write a first-person account as soon as the doctors let him use his laptop.”

Broadcast story:

Newspaper photographer Don Kerlinger probably will remember his coverage of a house fire this morning for a long time.

Kerlinger is in satisfactory condition at Middle Tennessee Medical Center after falling timbers injured him as he was trying to shoot photos of the fire.

The $150,000 house at 716 Ruppert St. in the Woodland Lake subdivision is a total loss.

No one was in the house at the time of the fire.

Murfreesboro Fire Inspector Allison Johnson said the cause of the fire still is under investigation.

Homeowner Janice Mason, who lives in the house with her husband, George, and their two children, said the family has full insurance coverage.

Feature lead:

Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee knew he made some mistakes at the Battle of Gettysburg, but in 1863 he still was optimistic about the outcome of the Civil War. A Murfreesboro woman now has a direct report from Lee with his views about the battle and the war.

Mattie Harrington, 718 Donald Ave., was going through a trunk in her attic this morning and found a letter that Lee had signed and sent to her great-grandfather.

“I’ve looked through that trunk a hundred times, and this is the first time I’ve taken the time to read through the letters,” Harrington said.