Outside the Northwest Baltimore home whose white paint was now singed with black, family members of Roger Weldon Carter, killed Tuesday night in a two-alarm blaze inside the home, described him as a model father, skilled musician and recently published author who had just celebrated his 63rd birthday this month.
"He was a brilliant man," said his wife, Joan Carter, who said the two have been legally separated since 1993. "He wrote books, he could draw, he taught himself how to play classical piano."
Carter and her daughter, Kysha Carter-Boyd, were parked outside the Central Forest Park home Wednesday morning, where they said Roger Carter lived as a tenant with several other people. Throughout the morning, other family members arrived and embraced the mother and daughter.
Roger Carter's death in the fire was confirmed by the state's chief medical examiner, Dr. David R. Fowler. Carter-Boyd said she learned of the fire from the Wednesday morning news and recognized the home her father rented.
Fire Department spokesman Kevin Cartwright said firefighters entered the house in the 4300 block of Springdale Ave., where they found Carter unconscious person on the second floor.
He was taken to an area hospital, where he later died, Cartwright said.
A graduate of Morgan State University, Roger Carter participated in the ROTC and was later honorably discharged from the military, Joan Carter said. He had just written a book, "The Force of Creation, Salvation and Judgment," published by WestBow Press in February.
"In 1995 I made a new year resolution to read the entire bible [sic] with no exegical [sic] commentary," Roger Carter wrote in a note on the publisher's website. He wrote that he spent four years "compiling information about the scriptures" and writing the book.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. "Everybody got out," Joan Carter said. "Roger was on that top floor. That's what happened."
One neighbor, Dexter Durant, said he heard firetrucks arrive about 11 p.m. Tuesday. He and other neighbors came outside and watched as firefighters battled the blaze. Flames were shooting out the back window, he said.
"It could have been a bigger mess," said Durant, 35, who said he believed Tuesday evening's rain prevented burning cinders from landing on nearby homes.
No other injuries were reported, Cartwright said.
Baltimore Sun reporter Liz F. Kay contributed to this article.
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