PORT TOWNSEND — A Port Townsend man escaped uninjured after his home caught fire early Sunday morning.
The man awoke to his home, on the 200 block of Hancock Street, filled with smoke at about 4:48 a.m. Sunday, said Bill Beezley, East Jefferson Fire-Rescue spokesperson.
“He awoke to heavy smoke and evacuated pretty rapidly,” Beezley said.
Firefighters could see the flames from near downtown Port Townsend, and as they arrived, the 500-square-foot single-story house was fully engulfed in flames with a power line down.
That power line sparked as firefighters worked to knock down the flames.
Beezley said firefighters had to be careful as they waited about 45 minutes for Jefferson PUD to cut off power.
They had to keep their hoses low and work around the line, he said.
The fire was knocked down within about 15 minutes, but firefighters had to continue working around the power line to extinguish the blaze, he said.
Beezley said firefighters wouldn’t know until today at the earliest what caused the fire, but said it does not appear suspicious.
The American Red Cross is providing assistance to the man, who was displaced by the fire and lost all of his possessions.
The man was renting the home and didn’t have renters insurance, Beezley said.
“He lost everything,” he said. The homeowner did have insurance.
“This is the second fire we’ve had in the last month or so where the people in the building didn’t have insurance and lost everything,” he said. “Insurance is necessary. We may not like it, but it proves its value [when there is a fire].”
Firefighters from Naval Magazine Indian Island and Port Ludlow Fire and Rescue also responded to the fire.
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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsula dailynews.com.
