Fire destroys Hoquiam house

Firefighters from four departments had to cut trails into the foliage around a Hoquiam house as a fire tore through it on Tuesday evening to get at the blaze.

The structure, located off Broadway Avenue, was destroyed, though the residents escaped with only minor injuries, said Hoquiam Fire Chief Matt Miller. One firefighter sustained a minor injury during the response but was evaluated on-scene and not transported.

“The call came in at 6:15. The first unit was enroute at 6:17,” Miller said. “The resident called it in originally. There were multiple calls that came in.”

A huge pillar of smoke rose from the house as firefighters worked to fight the fire with limited maneuvering space and oppressive foliage.

“The first arriving units found a well-involved structure fire. The front half of the house was fully involved,” Miller said. “Access around the structure was very difficult due to the overgrown vegetation and blackberry bushes.”

The residents had escaped and confirmed the house was clear, Miller said.

“The resident had difficulty escaping the structure. The fire was on the front porch. The majority of the structure was surrounded by blackberry bushes, making egress difficult,” Miller said. “Residents sustained multiple small lacerations forging through the briars. They were treated for minor smoke inhalation and minor lacerations.”

With the structure confirmed clear, and the fire growing, firefighters worked to keep it from spreading into the trees and brushes.

“Trees were beginning to char and ignite but had not yet. Command went to a defensive operation. Shortly thereafter, the roof collapsed,” Miller said. “We continued a defensive attack. No one ever went in.”

The fire was escalated to a second alarm, calling in off-duty personnel as well as an enhanced response from Aberdeen, Cosmopolis, and Grays Harbor Fire District 2, Miller said. Those four departments have begun working more closely in response to structure fires recently, Miller said, supplying at least 22 firefighters for this incident, while Hoquiam police helped control traffic on Broadway.

“Over the recent months, Aberdeen, Cosmopolis, Hoquiam and District 2 have built enhanced responses to structure fires so all four are going back and forth with each other to bring more firefighters to the scene quicker to improve safety for citizens and firefighters,” Miller said. “Not one department has a sufficient on-duty personnel to effectively fight a fire. Specifically, in this case, when we had to blaze trails around the structure.”

Firefighters had to cut through the vegetation surrounding the structure in order to get lines on the fire, Miller said.

“It became difficult to access the sides of the structure due to the vegetation,” Miller said. “Crews took extra time forging trails to lay hose lines which took extra effort, extra time.”

The response was also complicated by the narrow access to the residence, Miller said.

“Access to the house was very difficult,” Miller said. “We could only fit one apparatus up the driveway which meant that everyone parked on Broadway and walked up the narrow driveway.”

While the fire began on the front porch, outside, Miller said the totality of the damage means no specific cause will likely ever be determined. Firefighters cleared the scene just before 1 a.m., spending more than six hours on-scene, Miller said.

“A large portion of the house is completely damaged, gone,” Miller said. “It’s a total loss for that house.”

If conditions had been hotter and drier, as they’re forecast to be soon, the likelihood of the fire spreading into the vegetation and then to the nearby houses or apartments would have been much higher, Miller said.

“If this was (late) June or July and the brush was dried out, this would have turned into a wildland-urban interface situation,” Miller said. “This could have easily turned into a much larger incident.”

Clearing the area around your residence can save critical time in fighting a fire, Miller said — or prevent it from spreading to the house in the first place.

“This is a prime opportunity to remind people to make a defensible space around their house especially when they are surrounded by trees and vegetation,” Miller said. “Fire can spread in two ways in this case. If there’s a brush fire, it can spread to your house. If there’s a house fire, it can spread to the trees and vice versa. A good defensible space ensures your citizen and firefighter safety and helps prevent the spread of fire.”

Contact Senior Reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or michael.lockett@thedailyworld.com.