Paragraphs are beneficial because not everyone reading want to read the whole thing, some people are looking for a specific evidence or a specific topic that is somewhere in a written information. With paragraphs it is easy for someone to understand and get what they need or want to read, just by skimming the paragraph and reading the first sentence of each paragraph.
We separate written information into paragraphs to make the reading easier on the reader. They also add structure to your story. If everything was written in a single block of text, it would be easy to lose where you are on a page, and might make the reader lose focus.
The answer to your questions is: 'the housemates sit / around a radiant fireplace'. It conveys the sense that people experiencing the storm may view it positively, since they are warm, near a fireplace.
