Richland rental home destroyed by fire

Fire destroyed a Richland home, leaving a 59-year-old disabled woman and her dog homeless.

Firefighters were dispatched at 7:39 p.m. on Monday to a rental home at 909 Willard Avenue.

When they arrived, the fire was coming out of the front windows, door, and attic.

“The whole front of the structure was involved,” said Battalion Chief Curt Walsh, of the Richland Fire Department.

The renter is a 59-year-old disabled woman. She escaped the house with her small dog.

“She saw the fire start and tried to put it out,” he said. “We believed it started with a lighter. But we want to look at the complete incident to determine the cause.”

Firefighters from Richland, Kennewick and Benton County Fire District 4 extinguished the fire in minutes, Walsh said. They started with a transitional attack from the outside and then moved inside to mop up.

“The whole interior suffered heat and smoke damage,” he said. “Because of the size and the age of the house, I would call it a complete loss.”

The Red Cross assisted the woman and placed her in a hotel. The home was insured, but it is not known if she had rental insurance.

This story was originally published January 24, 2017 at 11:54 AM with the headline "Richland rental home destroyed by fire."