Fire destroys house along Plumley Road

BUTTE — A likely accidental fire destroyed a house along South Plumley Road about noon, Tuesday.

When firefighters from the Butte and Palmer fire departments responded to the scene April 7, the house was already fully engulfed, said Butte Fire Chief Eric Van Dusen. No one was injured in the blaze, but the structure was a total loss, he said.

Firefighters poked through the wreckage with axes and fire hooks looking for a cause shortly after the blaze was placed under control about 12:30 p.m. Authorities didn’t immediately know what caused the fire, but said it was likely accidental.

Several loud bangs alerted neighbor Jesse Marden to the presence of fire in the neighborhood. Marden and least one other neighbor resident called 911 after spotting flames and smoke pouring out of the single-story A-frame house about 11:45 a.m. Firefighters responded within minutes, Marden said.

“I heard a few bangs,” he said. “One or two are normal for the neighborhood, but there were a lot.”

Marden said he didn’t know the names of the neighbors, but thought at least four people lived in the house.

The house was appraised at about $57,000, and owned by the estate of Norman F. Dietz, according to borough property records.

Dietz died September 2014, according to his obituary published in the Frontiersman.

The blaze comes amid heightened wildfire conditions statewide. Reduced snowfall and warmer-than-usual winter temperatures have created the risk of an early fire season, state officials say. Gov. Bill Walker has proclaimed April 11 to 17 Alaska Wildland Fire Prevention and Preparedness week.

Last year’s Funny River Fire on the Kenai Peninsula burned almost 200,000 acres in mid-May and into late June, unusually early for a fire of that scale. The 100 Mile Creek Fire also burned about 23,000 acres near the Alaska Highway, according to the National Wildfire Coordinating Group.

The state averages about 500 wildfires per season, which burn about 1.2 million acres. Human actions cause about 90 percent of the fires, meaning they are preventable, according to state officials.

Officials urge residents to be careful with activities that could cause a fire, including campfires, debris burns, dragging trailer chains, poorly maintained ATV exhaust systems, or discarded cigarette butts, according to a press release. The state also urges Alaskans to prepare for wildfires, including preparations for possible evacuations over the course of fire season.

Burn permits are required and are available online from the Division of Forestry, at 1.usa.gov/1gSUdkk, or at neighborhood fire stations.

Contact Brian O’Connor at 352-2269, brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.