A man escaped a burning house in the Hillsboro area on Nov. 9. The Cedar Hill Fire Protection District was called at 4:52 a.m. to 8845 Big Bend Road, where a house that sat on stilts near the Big River was on fire, Assistant Chief Greg Shuster said.
When firefighters arrived, they found “fire coming from the basement area and also from the living area,” he said.
About 30 percent of the building was on fire, Shuster said.
The man who was staying at the house was able to escape unharmed and was waiting for firefighters when they arrived.
“We made an aggressive fire attack from the exterior and when we got it knocked down a little bit, we went in,” Shuster said. “The fire was under control at 5:40 a.m., and we got out of there at 7:25 a.m.”
The home was destroyed, he said.
Shuster said the cause of fire “is not considered suspicious," but Cedar Hill fire is still investigating it.
The occupant told firefighters he had been staying at the house, owned by his dad, to clean it up after a flood.
Now that the building has been destroyed, Shuster said he believes the man is staying with family.
The High Ridge, Eureka, De Soto Rural and Hillsboro fire protection districts and the Big River Ambulance District assisted with the call.