PORT ANGELES — A two-story house was destroyed Monday in a fire in the hills east of Port Angeles.
No one was injured in the blaze at 312 Bigelow Road, said Sam Phillips, Clallam County Fire District No. 2 assistant fire chief.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
A pet cat was found safe outside the residence. No other pets were missing, Phillips said.
Firefighters were called at 11:32 a.m. The house was blazing when they arrived.
“It was fully involved from top to bottom,” Phillips said.
“We could see a large column of smoke showing as soon as we left the fire station here [in Gales Addition].”
The owners, Frank and Candace Kathol, had left their residence at about 9 a.m., Phillips said.
Crews turned their attention to a venting 120-gallon propane tank that was immediately adjacent to the wood-frame house. The propane tank could have triggered an explosion “several hundred feet out” with shrapnel, Phillips said.
Crews doused the propane tank and a guest house 75 to 100 away with the water they had available. The tank was stabilized and the guest house was not damaged.
Water had to be trucked in to the woody, remote area off Monroe Road.
“We were hampered by a lack of a good water supply, and hampered by significant radiant heat from the fire itself,” Phillips said.
Surrounding cedar trees were damaged, Phillips said.
Clallam County Fire District No. 2 requested mutual aid from the Port Angeles Fire Department. An Olympic Ambulance was brought in as a precaution.
A total of 19 firefighters with three engines and two tenders were deployed.
Assistance from the Red Cross was offered to the Kathols. Phillips said the owners had another place to stay.
An insurance representative was at the scene. A damage estimate was not immediately available, Phillips said.
Phillips said a residential fire sprinkler system would have likely contained the fire until crews arrived.
He said indoor sprinklers are especially beneficial in remote areas.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com
