Blaze destroys couple’s home

A manufactured home was destroyed by a Thursday morning fire that set off ammunition stored inside.

One exploding round struck a neighbor who was watching the fire, but she was not seriously injured, said Pat Humphries, spokesman for county Fire Protection District No. 4.

The home on Denison-Chattaroy Road, less than a mile west of U.S. Highway 2, was a total loss.

A passer-by helped a female occupant and two dogs escape the flames about 9:30 a.m. The woman was taken to a hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation but was apparently not injured seriously, Humphries said.

The woman’s husband told firefighters he had hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

“They went off for 20 minutes while we were trying to knock it down,” Humphries said.

Exploding ammunition is not typically dangerous because the charge is not directed by a gun chamber, he said.

Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to control traffic and set up a detour around the fire on the normally busy road connecting U.S. 2 to U.S. Highway 395.

A roof built over the top of the manufactured home to keep snow off contained the flames, making the fire harder to extinguish.

The occupants were renting the single-wide home, he said.

The woman told firefighters she saw flames on the wall behind a computer, leading to initial speculation that the fire’s origin may have been electrical, but investigators were examining the rubble to determine the cause, Humphries said.

Dean McClure, a witness, said he was driving through the area when he spotted smoke coming from the dwelling. He said flames reached about 15 feet above the home during the height of the fire.

The American Red Cross in Spokane was helping the two occupants secure temporary shelter and belongings or food as needed, according to a press release from the agency.