A family of three escaped a fire at their home in the 1000 block of Mystic Valley Court in Imperial on Sunday afternoon (July 1). Unfortunately, the home is probably a total loss, Saline Valley Fire Chief Bob Dunn said.
At 3:29 p.m., Saline Valley Fire got a call about the fire, and firefighters arrived on the scene at 3:31 p.m. to find “a split foyer with heavy smoke coming from the roof,” Dunn said.
“All the occupants were out,” he said.
A man, his wife, an 18-month-old child and the family’s dog were all safe and waiting outside for fire crews when they arrived, Dunn said.
“The man had some minor burns to his left hand,” Dunn said. “He was treated at the scene by Rock Township (Ambulance District) but was not transported.”
The man had attempted to put out the blaze with a fire extinguisher before leaving the house, “but the fire was too big,” Dunn said.
He said the family dog helped alert the family to the fire.
“They said they heard a pop and their dog came running to them,” Dunn said. “We believe it was the kitchen window breaking because of the heat.”
The fire started on the exterior of the house, traveled up the wall onto the eaves and then into the attic, Dunn said.
Crews from the first truck went inside the home and started to attack the fire but a short time later had to get out.
“They were inside the house for five to seven minutes when the roof started to buckle and we evacuated the building,” Dunn said. “At that point, we were afraid the roof would come down on them.”
Two crews were sent around back with hoses and fought the fire in the attic from above with a ladder truck. With temperatures in the mid-90s, a second alarm was struck to bring more personnel to the scene, he said
“With the extent of the fire and the length of time we expected to be there, we called in a second alarm and I called for a second ambulance,” Dunn said.
The heat was rough on the firefighters, and it was not until about 4:30 p.m. when crews were confident the fire was out, Dunn said.
“Fighting the fire from the exterior makes it more challenging to tell,” Dunn said.
He said the house will probably have to be torn down.
“Between the fire, heat and water damage, I believe the house was a total loss,” Dunn said.
The state Fire Marshal’s Office was called in to investigate and determined the fire was accidental.
“There was a trash can full of old cigarette butts (outside) in the area where it appeared the fire originated,” Dunn said.
The American Red Cross was notified to help the family with emergency needs.
Dunn said he believed the family had a place to stay.
Firefighters were back in service at 6:17 p.m.
The Antonia, Rock Community and Mehlville fire protection districts helped with the call, as did the Rock Township Ambulance District.