Luck limits house fire damage

Fruitland firefighters credit some luck for helping to minimize damage Thursday evening in a residential fire.

The call to respond to a home at 299 Jeffery Drive came in shortly past 9 p.m., while chief Dean Riley and another firefighter were at the firehouse, Riley said Friday. And the assistant fire chief, Andy Renner, lives on an adjacent street, and was able to respond quickly and direct the placement of trucks as they arrived, Riley said.

Riley and the other firefighter took the first two trucks to the scene.

When firefighters arrived at the single-story home off Route W, smoke and flames were coming from a bedroom at the south end of the house, Riley said.

"The fire was roaring pretty good," he said.

As soon as a fire hose was ready, firefighters attacked the blaze from the exterior of the home, dousing the flames. Other firefighters entered through the front door to extinguish hot spots, Riley said.

The fire had spread to a second bedroom, but the firefighters' quick response kept the total damage to a minimum, Riley said.

The homeowner, who Riley did not identify, was fighting the fire with a garden hose when Renner arrived, Riley said. The man was overcome by smoke and treated at the scene, he said.

The homeowner had returned home shortly before the fire broke out, Riley said. The cause of the fire is undetermined, he said.

There was no estimate of the value of the damage, Riley said. The East County Fire Department provided assistance under a mutual-aid agreement.

rkeller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126