Four cats die in north Spokane fire

Four cats were killed in an apartment fire Monday in north Spokane.

Firefighters were dispatched shortly before 2 p.m. to the blaze at 6812 N. Atlantic St., according to a Spokane Fire Department news release. Responders learned the occupant returned home to find black smoke when opening the door.

Firefighters extinguished the fire inside the unit’s kitchen. The release said they retrieved six cats from the unit, but only two survived. No humans were injured.

The American Red Cross was contacted to assist in finding temporary housing for the occupant and two cats. The fire is under investigation.

The same afternoon in Spokane Valley, firefighters put out a fully involved garage fire with 15-foot flames that endangered a neighboring home in the 13100 block of East Saltese Road, according to a Spokane Valley Fire Department news release. Firefighters prevented the fire from extending into the home and neighboring house.

The garage is likely a total loss, with smoke damage throughout the home, firefighters said.

A resident of the home sought care at a hospital for minor injuries.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but a preliminary investigation indicates the resident was refueling a four-wheeler plow inside the closed garage and fuel vapors likely reached an open flame heater, starting the fire.