Pre-Christmas fire chars Powell Butte home

It could have been worse. See how firefighters stopped this potentially destructive fire from spreading …

Fire rigs pull up to the house and prepare to extinguish a fire that the occupant said started in the garage. Dick Harris/PF&R photo

By David F. Ashton
Three days before Christmas, alert neighbors in the Centennial neighborhood called 9-1-1 dispatchers when they saw smoke coming from a home’s garage.

And, at 10:23 a.m., emergency responders also got a call from the homeowner, who told them that a fire started in his garage, and smoke was filling the house.

Smoke belches from the garage as crews put out the blaze. Dick Harris/PF&R photo

When Portland Fire & Rescue (PF&R) crews (along with a Gresham fire engine) arrived at the house perched high on the base of Powell Butte, they split assignments.

“Fire units made entry, simultaneously extinguishing the fire and performing a search for occupants,” said PF&R spokesman Ron Rouse.

“The homeowner made it out, and was treated for smoke inhalation on-scene,” Rouse added. “Fire investigators are determining a cause and damage assessment.”

There was very little room between the adjacent large houses, which gave firefighters extra incentive to quickly and completely snuff out the fire – preventing even more potential loss. Dick Harris/PF&R photo

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