A family pet and fire codes perhaps saved the lives of four people in House Springs on Tuesday (July 2).
Family members – a man, woman and two young children – were asleep just before 10 p.m. at their home in the 4600 block of Demaree when the barking of the family’s dog woke the woman.
She smelled smoke and alerted the family to evacuate the burning house, said Fire Chief Mike Arnhart of the High Ridge Fire Protection District.
Firefighters were called at 9:56 p.m. When they arrived, a fire in the attic was breaking through the roof, Arnhart said. A second alarm was called, he said.
There was extensive smoke and fire damage to the structure, but the family was safe, and there were no injuries, he said.
An investigation revealed the fire started in the garage from an electrical appliance that had been plugged in. The garage was paneled with 5/8-inch drywall on the walls and ceiling, a requirement of current fire codes, Arnhart said.
“The drywall in the garage kept the fire from entering the house and forced it out onto the exterior of the building where it traveled into the attic,” Arnhart said. “The drywall did what it was designed to do, and it gave people time to escape.”
Arnhart said he did not know if a smoke detector was in the house or whether it would have been activated by the fire in the attic.
“This was a unique situation where the animal was the alert,” he said.
The High Ridge district was assisted by Eureka, Fenton, Cedar Hill, Goldman and SalineValley fire entities.