Trio of fires spark swift response

WASILLA — It was a busy Wednesday for Mat-Su firefighters with three house fires in the course of the day. When the smoke had cleared and the flames extinguished, no one was hurt and two homes were saved from destruction. But two birds and at least one cat were killed.

“Yesterday was the first really cold morning and that’s usually when we see an influx [of calls] because people are usually using their fireplaces or their wood stoves more heavily,” Mat-Su Borough Deputy Director of Emergency Services Clint Vardeman said.

On scene of the third fire Wednesday afternoon, firefighters in sooty turnout gear from the Big Lake, Meadow Lakes, Willow, Central Mat-Su and Houston fire departments offered phrases like, “good save” and “by the book” when talking about the day’s work.

The first fire was reported at 9:08 a.m. in the Big Lake Fire Department’s service area, in a trailer home off Emil Drive.

“The lady woke up at 4 o’clock in the morning, she added wood to her wood stove and went back to sleep,” Big Lake Fire Chief Bill Gamble said.

Some hours later her dogs woke her up.

“They were actually jumping on her while she was asleep,” Gamble said.

When she awoke, the trailer was filled with smoke.

“She was lucky to get out of the trailer alive,” Gamble said.

Of the three fires Wednesday, it was the only home firefighters could not save. The trailer was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived on scene, Gamble said. The fire claimed the first pet bird of the day.

The second call came at 12:08 p.m. while firefighters were still fighting the trailer fire – a chimney fire on Musk Ox Street in Big Lake.

“Fortunately we had already released one Central unit,” Gamble said.

That fire was the first “good save” of the day. Gamble said the fire was contained before it was able to spread from the chimney into the rest of the structure.

On scene there, pagers went off shortly after 12:32 p.m. for the day’s third fire, on Dawn Lake Drive off Johnson Road.

“This had the potential to burn to the ground,” Central Mat-Su Fire Chief James Steele said while standing outside the unfinished home.

He said the fire was definitely electrical and though he has his suspicions as to where exactly it started he was unable to say for sure.

Steele said the woman who lived there said she’d noticed the light in the home was brighter than normal. And a lot of it was coming from behind the TV stand. That’s when she noticed the fire.

The woman and her child made it out of the house fine, Steele said, but there was one brief moment of tension when he asked her if everyone was accounted for.

“She said, ‘Baby’s not out yet,’” and his heart jumped, Steele recounted.

But “Baby” was apparently the name of her pet bird, he said – the second winged pet to die that day.

He said firefighters also found the remains of a house cat.

Standing in the ruined living room, Steele pointed out a melted telephone, a door warped by the heat, the walls torn out to douse the blaze.

“This was just ready to torch,” he said, sweeping his arms to take in the ceiling and walls.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.