It’s been a busy week for Capital City Fire and Rescue as crews responded to two separate fires on Wednesday and Thursday. Neither fire resulted in reported injuries.
On Wednesday at approximately 11:18 a.m., CCFR responded to a report of a residential structure fire on Emily Way in the Mendenhall Valley. According to CCFR Fire Marshal Dan Jager, fire personnel discovered a fire in the backyard of the residence and determined the cause was from an unauthorized open burn. Jager said the occupant did not have a burn permit and the fire exceeded the allowable size limitation in addition to being in a poor location, which is how it spread so quickly. The area that burned was approximately 20 feet by 30 feet and did not extend to any other structures.
The second fire took place on Thursday at approximately 5:15 a.m. when CCFR crews responded to a residential structure fire in the 9400 block of Glacier Highway in the Mendenhall Valley. According to Jager, fire personnel found a two story residence with smoke spilling out from the attic space. Personnel immediately began efforts to extinguish the fire that was active in the attic space and the interior wall. The occupants safely evacuated the structure.
Jager’s investigation concluded that the fire originated on the exterior corner of the home and traveled vertically to the roof vent and burned the interior wall space and attic spaces. According to Jager, the cause has yet to be determined at this time and the damage is estimated at approximately $2,000.
Jager said CCFR would like to remind residents to use extreme caution when conducting any open burning activity, to have a burn permit and follow all rules for the permit to avoid a fire problem and possible citations.
• Contact reporter Jonson Kuhn at jonson.kuhn@juneauempire.com.
