Fire Press Release

ISSUING OFFICER: Bob Green/Battalion Chief
DATE OF INCIDENT: 2/20/2011
INCIDENT TYPE: Structure Fire
INCIDENT ADDRESS: 1910 W Bridge
CITY: Spokane
STATE: WA
ZIP: 99201

NARRATIVE: The Spokane City Fire Dept. dispatched fire fighting crews and their fire apparatus to 1910 W. Bridge at 20:04 hrs. on Sunday, February 20th, 2011, for a reported structure fire. The first arriving fire companies, E4 and L4 from the Browne's Addition neighborhood Fire Station, reported heavy fire showing from a second floor window of a 2 story wood/frame residence at the very front of the building. The crew of E4 quickly donned their Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) and immediately went to the front door with a charged hose lead and proceeded to force entry into the locked structure. Once inside they made their way to the interior stairway and up the stairs to the second floor where they encountered the hot and rapidly growing fire that by now was burning freely in a large open room. As they were putting water on the fire upstairs, other arriving crews were outside laddering the building and scaling the sharply sloped roof in order to cut a hole over where the main body of fire was burning to allow the pent-up heat and toxic gases to vent into the cold night air. Additional hose lines were stretched into the building to provide protection for the initial interior attack crew and to assist in the actual extinguishment of the fire. Other fire crews were searching the interior of the structure and to everyone's relief those crews reported that the house was vacant and that it appeared to be in the process of being remodeled. Still other crews were sent inside the building to pull the ceilings on the second floor to get access to the fire that had spread into the attic space between the second floor ceiling and the underside of the roof. All of these necessary and well-coordinated efforts came together and achieved a fairly rapid knock-down of this fire. There were no reports of any serious injuries to any of the fire fighters at the scene. The fire was contained to the second floor, to the attic space, and to some of the structural members of the roof. The cause of this fire is currently being investigated by the Spokane Fire Department's Special Investigation Unit. Fire crews were kept on scene all through the night on "fire watch" to keep an eye on the scene until the investigators could take a look at the structure in the light of day. 33 fire fighters arrived at this fire on 9 pieces of fire fighting apparatus including 5 engines, 2 senior ladder trucks, 1 pumper-ladder truck, 1 heavy rescue apparatus, and 2 command vehicles.

PROBABLE CAUSE: Under investigation.
DAMAGE EXTENT: Heavy fire damage to the second floor, the attic space, and to some of the structural components of the roof system.
DOLLAR LOSS: 30,000
FIREFIGHTER RESPONSE: 33
MUTUAL AID: None Given

For more information on this release, please call (509)625-7002 and/or check out the SFD Blog at www.spokanefire.blogspot.com

END OF RELEASE