UPDATE: June 5 at 2:19 p.m.
The Spokane Fire Department released additional information on the porch fire that occurred on Wednesday afternoon on West Gardner Avenue. Two residents were displaced after a cigarette ignited a blaze, fire officials reported.
Firefighters were dispatched at 4:09 p.m. to the 2500 block on Tuesday and arrived within four minutes to find flames visible from the roof. Neighbors were trying to put out the fire with garden hoses.
Fire crews quickly coordinated an interior search while others worked to ventilate the structure by opening the roof and ceiling to access flames spreading through the attic. The fire was controlled in 20 minutes, but the home suffered significant damage.
One adult was taken to the hospital for a knee injury sustained while helping to run a hose. The American Red Cross was contacted to assist the two displaced residents with temporary housing.
Fire investigators determined the fire started when a neighbor dropped a lit cigarette onto the ground covered with Cottonwood pollen. The highly flammable pollen ignited and rapidly spread across the yard, into shrubbery, and onto the porch, eventually reaching the home.
This incident highlights the heightened fire risk as wildland fire season approaches. Fire officials urge caution with smoking materials, advising to constantly monitor them and extinguish completely in a certified receptacle, submerged in water, or placed in a non-combustible container with a lid.
Original coverage: June 4 at 11:13 p.m.
SPOKANE, Wash. – A fire caused major damage to a home in Spokane’s West Central neighborhood earlier this afternoon.
The incident occurred on West Gardner Avenue around 4:00 p.m. Fire crews arrived to find neighbors attempting to control the flames with garden hoses.
Firefighters quickly took over and were able to contain the fire within 20 minutes. Fortunately, no injuries have been reported.
Despite the swift response, the home suffered significant damage. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
