Tri-Cities firefighters seeing increase in fires. 2 Kennewick homes burned within a day
Firefighters in the Tri-Cities area have faced an unusually high number of house fires lately.
Most recently, a Friday afternoon blaze in a small Kennewick home killed a pet.
A Kennewick deputy fire marshal spotted smoke and flames coming from the roof at 206 S. Vancouver St. shortly before 12:20 p.m. and called for help, Chief Chad Michael told the Herald.
It’s unclear if anyone was home at the time, but it’s believed the fire started in a garage that had been converted into a living area. The cause of the fire hasn’t been determined.
When firefighters got inside, they found a dog had died in the home.
The fire was under control within a half hour, and no one was hurt. It’s still unknown how much damage was done to the house.
The firefighting efforts led police to shut down traffic on Vancouver Street at the intersection with Fourth Avenue.
That was the second faced by Kennewick firefighters in the past day.
Officials believe an electrical problem sparked a fire in an attic that forced four people out of a home at 3930 S. Cedar St. on Thursday.
The homeowner was trying to get the power to work and noticed that the circuit breaker kept turning off. Shortly after resetting it several times, the owner smelled smoke about 6:45 p.m.
The two people who lived in the home, along with two guests, were able to get out safely, Michael said.
Firefighters found flames coming from the roof and saw a lot of smoke from the eaves. They soon discovered a blaze burning inside the attic. Crews pulled down the ceiling inside the house and sprayed water inside.
Crews used tarps to protect items inside the house, and searched inside. No one was found.
While firefighters were able to extinguish the flames quickly, the water, smoke and fire did enough damage that the home won’t be livable.
A busy month
Firefighters across the Tri-Cities have been hit with a busy month, said Michael and Franklin County Fire District 3 Chief Mike Harris said.
Within the past week firefighters have gone to:
▪ A fire damaged a garage at 5218 Livingston Rd. about 9:30 p.m. Saturday.
▪ One person was hurt when a space heater is suspected to have started a fire about 8 a.m. Sunday at the Flamingo Trailer Park in Pasco. The home was destroyed in the fire.
▪ A woman and her grandson escaped a blaze that started with a kitchen fire at 5 p.m. on Sunday in a single-wide mobile home on Bryson Brown Road. The family’s dog is believed to have died in the fire.
▪ A blaze broke out in a Finley shop on East Bowles Road about 5:12 a.m. on Wednesday. The fire threatened a nearby home. The cause is under investigation.
▪ A hot plate used to keep water from freezing inside a peacock enclosure on Green Road started a fire on Wednesday. Four of the birds refused to leave the wire enclosure while the firefighters worked but the birds were unhurt.
Michael and Harris said there isn’t a lot to connect the fires. Some are electrical, some happened because people weren’t paying attention and others remain under investigation.
But people can take some steps to make sure they are safe, including making sure they have working smoke alarms and making sure they have an emergency plan for what to do when there is a fire.
“We don’t have one season where there is more risk. We have fire risk in all seasons,” Michael said.
People can find tips on how to keep your house safe at the National Fire Protection Association and U.S. Fire Administration websites.