fire

911 got a call at 11:37 Tuesday morning from a neighbor driving by; the house on the on the corner of 8th and Pleasant Street was on fire. By shortly after noon, most of the duplex was destroyed.

The occupants are all believed safe, including a young man reported to be upstairs showering when the fire broke out. There are no reported injuries. There were 6-8 people living in the rented duplex, including two people neighbors said to were living in the garage. None apparently had renters’ insurance.

Jenny Johnson, was at home when the fire broke out. "There was an explosion," she said, "this loud pop."

She looked at her clock and realized the power was out. Looking out the window, she saw smoke billowing through the yards. She grabbed her dog and ran when she heard the fire department outside yelling "Get out! Get out!"

The fire department, which responded with five fire trucks, including 2 ladder trucks, three ambulances and three of their chief officials, had stopped the spread of the blaze by 12:30. The house continued to flare up until almost 2 pm, but no longer appeared to be in danger of spreading.

It was too early to tell the cause of the fire said Deputy Chief Marc Walker. Neighbors say they thought it started at the back of the building. According to Walker it will be several days before anything will be known. The building is unstable and first must be pulled down, then investigators will go through the debris pile.

This is the same house that was profiled this summer on local news station KMTR. Neighbors were complaining people were living out of cars in front of the building and local officials were not responding to the complaints, they allege.

Next door neighbor Leslee Berg was able to get her three dogs and her cat out safely when the wall of her house caught fire as well. The blaze was quickly put out, damaging only the living room. The fire department moved artwork and other belongings away from the wall that burned, saving them from damage. The family expects to be able to move back in shortly, and their insurance company who was on the scene, provided them with a hotel room.

The renters in the burned duplex had no insurance. Everything they owned, including a car and a pickup truck parked outside, was destroyed. The tires on the car and truck melted into the driveway from the heat of the blaze.

The American Red Cross was on the scene providing food, clothing and a place to stay for those who had immediate needs. Karen Smith, Red Cross director of emergency services director for the area, said she will meet with those who lived in the duplex tomorrow to talk about what to do next, and possibly provide first month’s rent.

She cautioned other renters to get make sure to get insured. Everything in the house and the cars would have been covered she said.

Took yesterday off from the blog for, you know, writing purposes. The print paper can be demanding. Crazy old media. (I'd insert an emoticon here, but isn't that just so obvious?)

1. Wine in the news. Saves lives in Greece (though the story is tragic) and especially in the Willamette Valley, heralds global warming.

2. L.A. catching up with Eugene. OK, maybe surpassing us. But Weyerhauser and NextStep do a great job even if they're not city-sponsored.

3. Pollution kills. Watch out for that rising economy thing, China.

4. More "Californication." Actually, I got nothing against Cali, but plans to screw the lower Columbia and Coos Bay don't make me happy.

5. Bush may be an idiot. But he's a loyal one!

6. Got art? Got debt? If you're a college, sell off that art! Or maybe not.

7. Stupid city ordinance. I kind of fell in love with the blog posts about xeriscaping here. (But if you're into dahlias, you'll also be happy.) Extra cool: It's by Ketzel Levine. She lives in Portland. I heard a rumor that she used to work at KLCC, but I can't find any documentation of that. Yes? No? Readers?

8. Fear and photos. A bad combination for civil liberties and common sense.

9. Idaho is a gorgeous state. But one of its senators ain't lookin' too good right now.

10. Were you awake for the lunar eclipse?

This is what it looked like in San Francisco.