Tri-Cities firefighter hurt by collapsing ceiling in early morning house fire

A Kennewick firefighter was injured when sheetrock collapsed on him inside a small house that was heavily damaged by fire early Sunday.

The firefighter was taken to Trios Southridge Hospital in Kennewick for treatment and released three hours later, according to the Kennewick Fire Department.

Kennewick, Wash., firefighters arrived just after 2 a.m. at the house in the 800 block of West 41st Place to find fire shooting out of the back of the house.

It took about 20 minutes to bring the fire under control.

Firefighters initially worked from the outside of the house to slow the spread of the fire. As more firefighters arrived, the priority was to search for any occupants and put out the source of the fire.

Nobody was found inside.

Extensive smoke and fire damage has left the house uninhabitable, according to the fire department.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.