Home damaged by fire

KNIK — Central Mat-Su and West Lakes Fire Departments avoided a disaster when responding to a house fire at Mile 12 of Knik-Goose Bay Road Wednesday.

The fire was blowing out of the house and flames were covering an above-ground fuel tank, Steele said. Without Central Mat-Su’s new tanker and its front-mounted turret that spays foam, the fire could have been much larger.

“It was unknown if it was occupied when we arrived,” Central Mat-Su chief James Steele said, Wednesday. “Forty percent of the house was involved in flames.”

The fire crews did their primary search for victims and sounded the initial all-clear. Further efforts were delayed because a live electrical wire ran straight from a transformer into the house.

As soon as that was disconnected, the firefighters proceeded to seek out and extinguish the fire that was hiding in the home made up of multiple add-ons.

Firefighters told Steele there were two roofs in the back section of the house, one built on top of another. They said it looked like the fire was trapped in-between the two.

By the time the fire was under control, the house on Meteor Street sustained 70 to 80 percent structural damage.

“This house was built before there were codes out here,” Steele said. “Most of the inside is charred out, and there is heavy water damage. Some of the contents may be salvageable, but I’m sure the insurance company, if there is one, will take the whole structure down.”

Contact Todd L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.