A home at 1936 Iditarod Trail in Festus was severely damaged by fire on Oct. 6. The home is uninhabitable until repairs can be made, Festus Fire Department officials reported.
The woman and three children who live there were not at home when the fire broke out, but they arrived before firefighters left the scene, said Brian Schlicting, a Festus firefighter and EMT.
He said a cat, a turtle and a hamster were in the home during the fire, but they were rescued unharmed.
“We received the call at 8:14 p.m. and arrived a few minutes later,” Schlicting said. “We had it knocked down pretty fast – in less than 10 minutes. It started in the rear of the building, a split-level two-story house. There was fire through the roof of the house. It reached into the attic. We had to pull ceiling from the house to get to the fire.”
He said firefighters were on the scene for more than three hours. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, he said Tuesday (Oct. 10).
“The family arrived on scene while we were there,” Schlicting said. “They were assisted by the Red Cross.”
He said he did not know where the family is staying.
The Crystal City Fire Department and the Jefferson, R-7, Mapaville and Hematite fire protection districts helped with the call, while the De Soto Rural Fire Protection District “moved up” to cover the Festus firehouse, he said.