A late night fire which spilled from a fireplace onto a combustible hearth began to ignite a family’s living room on 7th Street in Waterloo late Tuesday and early Wednesday morning, but a rapid response and fire attack by first arriving Lebanon Fire District units quickly controlled the blaze and prevented further damage, according to a department statement.
Ten Lebanon Fire District apparatus and 18 firefighters responded to the blaze, which was reported at 11:24 p.m. Units from the Oak Street fire station were on scene at 11:3.7 pm and the fire was under control in under 10 minutes.
While the Cheadle Lake fire station is much closer to the affected home, its two-person crew was unavailable to respond as they were already handling a medical call at the time of the fire.
The home, located on 7th Street in Waterloo, was occupied at the time of the fire by two adults and their twin infants, along with three family dogs. The family members were able to escape the fire and smoke, and firefighters rescued the dogs from the structure, all of whom were unharmed.
A second alarm was requested by the incident commander for water and manpower, as the fire was located far from any fire hydrants and LFD was short one crew of firefighters from the Cheadle Lake station. Five units with fifteen personnel responded from the Albany, Brownsville, Scio, and Sweet Home fire departments.
LFD Battalion Chief Ron Danielson described the cause of the fire as stemming from the combination of a fireplace with no ash lip to prevent hot coals from rolling out of the fire box with the presence of a hearth made out of wood, which is a combustible material. Around 11:20 p.m. a resident saw an orange glow coming from beneath the hearth and realized that the hearth and the floor below it were on fire. Firefighters believe that hot embers from the fireplace rolled out of the fireplace and ignited the hearth, eventually burning down to the flooring beneath the hearth.
Once firefighters extinguished the fire, they worked to overhaul the area to ensure that the fire was completely out. Overhaul is a process used by firefighters to remove structural materials around the fire area, in this case flooring and wall material, to ensure that there are no hidden areas of fire which could potentially rekindle hours later and cause more damage. A thermal imaging camera, which uses a screen displaying infrared heat, was also used to confirm that no hot spots remained.
The family was displaced from the home this morning and the Lebanon Fire District made arrangements for them to stay the night at the Best Western Premier Boulder Falls Inn on Mullins Drive using money from LFCAIRS, the non-profit Lebanon Fire Community Assistance and Initial Relief Services group. Damages were estimated at roughly $7,000 to the home and contents.
The home did not have a working smoke detector, and the Lebanon
Fire District would like to take this opportunity to encourage all citizens to ensure that they have the proper number and location of smoke detectors in their home and that those detectors are in working order. For more information on smoke detectors or home fire safety contact the Lebanon Fire District at 541-451-1901 or visit their website at www.lebanonfire.org.
For HD Video from this and other Lebanon Fire District incidents, visit https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjTxDBuPbD3DPAybCkCgEvg