January 29, 2012

1:14 PM

Portland firefighters from Station 19 located in the Mount Tabor neighborhood, along with three other local stations, responded to a report of a shed on fire at 135 NE 78th Avenue just a couple of minutes before noon today. Upon arrival, the officer on E19 reported a large shed fully-involved in fire that was critically threatening a home right next to it.

While the driver of E19 was hooking supply hoses up to a nearby fire hydrant, the remaining two firefighters with assistance from two addiditonal firefighters from Rescue 19 were able to quickly mount an exterior attack and successfully knock down the bulk of heat and fire from the shed while also protecting the exterior of the home. This is another example of the benefit that residents of the City of Portland experience from having fully-staffed fire stations located strategically throughout the city. Fires grow exponentially with every minute they are allowed to burn and this one was extinguished right at the critical time that kept losses at a much lower extent.

An ambulance was called to examine a male occupant of the home for minor burns and scrapes that he received while trying to extinguish the fire before our arrival. Portland Fire would like to remind residents that the first priorty in the event of a fire is to retreat to a safe environment and then call 9-1-1. Too often, well intentioned people are hurt or killed trying to fight a fire without the proper training or equipment. The fire environment is an extremely dangerous one to be in and a small fire can erupt into a life-threatening one much more quickly than a normal person can react to. Luckily the injuries sustained in this fire were minor enough that the occupant did not require transport to the hospital.

The fire was declared under control within ten minutes of arrival, with damages to the shed enough for it to be declared a total loss and no damage reported to the house.

  Portland Fire & Rescue