A fire destroyed a house in the 600 block of Valentine Street in Festus on Sunday night, Nov. 10, according to Festus Fire Chief Jeff Broombaugh. He said his department received a call about the blaze about 9 p.m.
“There was fire coming out of the front side of the house when firefighters arrived,” Broombaugh said. “It was burning pretty good when they got there. It was under control by about 10:20 p.m.”
He said the fire destroyed the single-story house. Heat from the fire melted some of the siding on a neighboring house. No injuries were reported by firefighters who remained on scene until 11:40 p.m., he said.
The house was unoccupied when firefighters arrived, but the homeowner arrived while they were battling the fire, Broombaugh said.
“He said his family would help him out,” he said.
He said a cause has not yet been determined.
“It’s still under investigation,” Broombaugh said. “There’s no immediate sign pointing toward suspicious.”
The Crystal City and Herculaneum fire departments and the Dunklin, Hematite and Jefferson R-7 fire districts, as well as the Joachim Platting Ambulance District, assisted with the call.