Blaze destroys Valley duplex

Two 9-year-old boys playing with a lighter Sunday morning started a fire that burned a Spokane Valley duplex and left two families homeless.

The fire at 2714 N. Perrine Ct. also killed a dog and destroyed two vehicles, a carport and shed, said Bill Clifford, Spokane Valley Fire Department public information officer.

No one was injured, and three other dogs escaped unharmed.

Seven people lived in the two units. They did not have renters’ insurance.

Crews were called to the home about 11:30 a.m.

Eleven units with 23 firefighters responded.

Clifford said the two boys were playing with a lighter and started a fire in a shed in the carport.

“There was a gas can in the shed that ignited and spread the fire real fast,” he said.

The two boys live in the neighborhood, Clifford said.

Neither will be criminally charged, but Clifford said he hopes to enroll both in the Fire Department’s juvenile fire setters program.

The program teaches kids about fire hazards and the impact fires can have on people’s lives, and Clifford said he hopes it will keep the boys from starting any additional fires.

Though there will be no criminal charges, civil suits could be filed against the boys’ parents, Clifford said.

The Fire Department estimates damage to the duplex, its contents and the vehicles at $300,000.

Adults must take responsibility for educating their children about fire, Clifford said, adding, “Parents need to keep lighters and matches away from their kids.”