By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
A Napavine area family lost everything in a house fire this morning, except their lives.
Crews called about 5 a.m. to the 300 block of Raubuck Road found fire in the front room of the two-story house and extinguished it, according to Fire Investigator Derrick Paul.
Two adults and four children escaped safely, according to Paul.
“There were working smoke detectors throughout the house, that’s what woke the parents up,” Paul said. “The fact is smoke detectors quite possibly saved the lives of all those kids.”
A pet dog was evacuated as well, according to Lewis County Fire District 5. The parents were treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation, according to Paul.
Five fire departments battled the blaze, according to District 5.
Paul said the the fire damage was confined to the front room, although the rest of the house sustained heavy smoke damage.
It appeared the blaze began next to the chimney, Paul said. A fire had been left burning overnight in a fireplace insert, their only source of heat, he said.
After everyone had cleared the scene, part of the family returned and called 911 about 9:45 a.m. when they saw smoke, according to Paul.
“This time there was fire throughout the residence,” he said. “Basically, it burned to the ground.”
It’s undetermined what caused the second fire, but it’s a possibility an unextinguished ember flared up, Paul said.
“That sort of stuff does happen, nobody wants it to happen, we try real hard to make sure it doesn’t happen,” he said.
Paul said the Red Cross is assisting.
He also noted he wanted to emphasize that especially this time of year when the cold weather has more folks burning in fireplaces, that chimneys should be checked.
Earlier this morning, multiple occupants of a two-story house southwest of Littlerock escaped another house fire.
Crews were called about 3:40 a.m. to the 13900 block of Vue Street Southwest, according to West Thurston Fire Authority.
While there were smoke detectors, an overnight guest was awakened to smoke before they went off and found fire in the laundry room, Chief Robert Scott said.
Five fire departments responded to assist. Flames had extended into the roof in one area, the attic space of the second floor and over the garage, according to Scott.
The home was left with smoke and soot damage to most of the second floor, Scott said.
In that case, one male was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation and a minor burn to his hand, Scott said. Five or six people escaped the fire, he said
The cause is under investigation.
[1]A house in the Bordeaux area southwest of Littlerock caught fire this morning. / Courtesy photo by Robert Scott