Portland Fire & Rescue responds to 2nd alarm house fire in the SW Hills (Photo)

June 22, 2023 14:45

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Portland Fire & Rescue responds to 2nd alarm house fire in the SW Hills

Just before 11:30 this morning, Portland Fire & Rescue responded to a possible roof fire of a home in the SW Hills Neighborhood which places 4 fire engines, 2 fire trucks, a heavy rescue, and 2 chiefs responding to the location. The first arriving engine reported heavy black smoke pushing out of every vent hole on the roof under pressure giving the crew an indication of an attic fire of a two-story home with a basement. An offensive fire attack was directed by the commanding officer and crews began to stretch handlines to the front door. 

Interior reports were thick black smoke down to the floor with very low levels of heat as crews were moving through the home to find the location of the fire. Exterior reports of fire present on the back corner of the home and crews were stretching hand lines to this location to begin extinguishment of the fire from the outside of the home as well. 

The crew assigned water supply attached to a hydrant located adjacent to the property that was “dead” and did not have any water flowing to it and reported this to command. With no guaranteed water available to the firefighting crews, the command officer requested a second alarm assignment that started another 24 firefighters and a chief officer on their way to the scene of the emergency if the delay in water was going to affect the ability of the crews on scene to prevent the spread of fire to the tree canopy and neighboring homes. The next closest hydrant was accessed and was functioning so water flow to the pumping engine was established in short order to allow for a constant flow of water through the hand lines used in the incident. (The cause of the dead hydrant was due to a closed valve in the street that was opened by crews after the fire completely extinguished and has been reported to the proper individuals in the city.)

Radio reports from interior crews were asking for the roof to be opened by the truck crew on the exterior to remove the smoke and the heat, now at a high level, as crews advanced up the stairs to the second level of the home. Once the hole in the roof was completed allowing the trapped smoke and heat to vent to the outside, interior crews were able to access the fire and extinguish the flames. With the roof opened and water flowing from multiple hand lines, crews were able to gain control of the fire and have complete extinguishment in 15 minutes. There was no fire spread into the dense tree canopy and all exposure homes were undamaged from the fire.

There were no injuries reported of any resident or firefighter working on the scene. The family that lives in the home will be displaced while the home is restored. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Challenges to Portland Fire & Rescue on this fire were the water supply difficulties previously mentioned. Additionally, the narrow roads used to access this home slowed the progress of the firefighters as other vehicles on the road have very few opportunities to pull over allowing the emergency apparatus to pass. The location of the home also forced many of the fire engines to park quite a distance away and firefighters needed walk quite a distance to the scene with all the tools needed to properly fight the fire. 

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