Quiet week takes turn Wednesday
Spokane Valley Fire had a relatively low number of calls for the period between Dec. 22 and noon Wednesday, but the bad weather Wednesday was already starting to change that.
“We had 16 calls today just before noon, most of them power lines and stuff,” said fire marshal Kevin Miller.
On of those calls, in the 8000 block of East Euclid Avenue, involved a tree that had taken down power lines and knocked out power to several home.
Of the 154 calls during the week, 129 were EMS calls. Only two involved fires. A clothes dryer fire was reported in the 10100 block of East Ninth Avenue on Dec. 24. “The homeowner got the dryer out before we got there,” Miller said. “We just helped them clear the smoke out of the house.”
A pan of oil left on the stove started a fire in the 12400 block of East Eighth Avenue on Dec. 24. During the incident the homeowner discovered his smoke detector did not work and fire crews gave him a new one, Miller said.
A family called for help on Christmas Eve after they accidentally locked a 2-year-old child inside a house as they were leaving town for the holidays. “The guys were able to jimmy open the door without damaging it and got inside,” Miller said.
A resident in the 2700 block of North Wilbur Road called after being locked out of their home on Dec. 27. Fire crews helped the homeowner in through the window, Miller said. “Whenever we do this we check ID and are convinced we’re not assisting burglars,” Miller said.
On Christmas Day some children playing inside an apartment at 2820 N. Cherry broke off a fire sprinkler head, flooding their apartment and two apartments below them.
At 5 a.m. on Dec. 29 the department received a hazardous materials call about an extremely strong odor in the 23400 block of East Wabash Avenue. But the pungent smell wasn’t hazardous. “When the guys got there, it was a skunk,” Miller said.