SEQUIM — No one was hurt in a Tuesday morning blaze where firefighters pulled a half-burned mattress and blankets out of a home at 871 E. Belfield Ave.
The fire, reported shortly after 9 a.m., resulted in extensive damage to the bedroom where it was believed to have originated.
Two tenants safely escaped from the blaze.
The bedroom was left with charred walls, while the rest of the home received extensive to moderate smoke and water damage after Clallam County Fire District No. 3 firefighters doused it about 9:30 a.m., said district spokesman Patrick Young.
The exact cause of the fire was under investigation and undetermined Tuesday morning after firefighters had pulled a half-burned mattress and blankets onto the front lawn of the house in an east Sequim neighborhood just south of the Sequim Senior Activity Center.
The owner of the home said the two renters in the home would be relocated to another Sequim rental he owned.
“I just got a call at work, and they told me the house is on fire,” said homeowner Chad Copeland, who was being interviewed by Fire Chief Steve Vogel at the scene.
Copeland, who valued the home at about $160,000 or more, said it has been in his family for almost 40 years.
He expects insurance to cover the damage.
The renters were identified as Ed Nicholson, who had children ages 12 and 13 living with him at the home, and another unidentified man.
The children were not home at the time of the fire, Young said.
One of the men was sleeping at the time of the fire. Another came home and when both realized the house was filled with smoke, they quickly left, firefighters said.
“Mattress fires burn hot and smoky,” Young said.
The men were examined by emergency medical technicians with Olympic Ambulance at the scene and released without being transported to the hospital.
Fire district officials contacted the Olympic Peninsula Chapter of the American Red Cross to help them with any needs they might have.
Several trucks and 18 firefighters arrived at the fire.
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-681-2391 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
