Saturday fire investigated

Meadow Lakes woman airlifted to Seattle

July 23, 2006

By Amy Schenck/Frontiersman

A fire in Meadow Lakes on Friday night that consumed a mobile home and sent a woman to the hospital is under investigation by the state fire marshal's office, said Rocky Jones, Meadow Lakes Fire Department chief.

A 41-year-old woman was in the home at the time of the fire. Burned on her face and hands, she was taken in an ambulance to Mat-Su Regional Medical Center and later airlifted to a hospital in Seattle.

The fire started around 11 p.m. and the scene was cleared by 2:30 a.m., Jones said.

Around the time was reported, neighbors heard two explosions, the second one much louder than the first, said Megan Metcalf, who lives two houses away from where the incident happened.

Approximately 20 firefighters from Meadow Lakes, Big Lake, Houston, Willow and Central Mat-Su fire departments responded to the blaze, Jones said.

The Alaska State Troopers also were on the scene.

Nobody from Alaska State Troopers or the fire marshal's office could be reached for comment on Saturday.

Two members from the Red Cross Volunteer Disaster Team went to Mat-Su Regional Medical Center but did not speak directly with the victim, who was in the emergency room, said Nancy Hall, district manager for

the Mat-Su Valley office of the American Red Cross of Alaska.

They did speak with the victim's family and friends who were congregated in the waiting room. After providing family members and friends with cards and information about assistance programs, Red Cross representatives determined it was not appropriate to interfere, Hall said.

Contact Amy Schenck at 352-2269 or amy.schenck@ frontiersman.com.