Blaze damages garages, houses

A fire rapidly took over a junk-filled garage Friday evening, taking with it part of a neighboring house, half of another garage and singeing another house.

Nobody was home at either of the houses when the fire started, and two dogs and a cat escaped injury, said Battalion Chief Steve Sabo of the Spokane Fire Department.

Several neighbors used garden hoses to try to thwart the blaze before firefighters arrived at 6:46 p.m., and numerous other residents stood around and watched. One neighbor, Kala Baty, said he and three others may have helped save a third house, but the main fire proved too much for their efforts.

About 24 firefighters responded and were able to knock down the fire in about 12 minutes, Sabo said.

The fire caused $60,000 in damage, according to a news release.

Debbie Hargrave, who has lived at 2442 N. Perry St. with her husband and children for 12 years, said she wasn’t too sad about losing the junk in her garage and was fortunate her house had minor damage.

“It’s of no value other than my family,” Hargrave said. “That’s the biggest thing.”

Her family’s 1-year-old dog was at home, but a friend took it to safety. A dog and a cat also were in the basement of 1412 E. Jackson Ave., but firefighters didn’t remove them because they were in little danger, even though the rear of that house was heavily damaged, Sabo said.

The fire most likely started near the Hargraves’ garage, Sabo said. No cause was known late Friday.

Baty described the area by both houses’ garages as “a tinder box of stuff.” He also said it seemed as though the fire started in that area.

During the fire, a live power line came down and sparked on the street, but fire crews had taped off the area to keep the dozens of onlookers safe. Gawking neighbors often make firefighters’ jobs harder because crews have to keep more people out of danger, but that’s part of the job, Sabo said.

Fire investigators were at the scene for several hours after the fire. The American Red Cross provided accommodation for seven residents.