A suspicious fire in the Indian Trail neighborhood gutted a home Sunday morning and nearly burned down a neighborhood. Firefighters say it sparked around 6:00 a.m. at the 10000 block of North Woodridge.
Firefighters say this is a suspicious fire because this house is secluded from the rest of the neighborhood, it's for sale, and no one is living inside it.
"That is kind of where were going in terms of a criminal investigation," Assistant Spokane Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said.
Flames tore through the roof of the home and threatened nearby trees, that lead to houses in all directions. Crews from the neighborhood fire station responded within four minutes of the call, and it took them almost two hours to put it out.
"It could have been a really catastrophic fire if the wind was behind it and it was a little bit warmer this morning," Schaeffer said.
Barbara Plewman has looked up at the home across the street for more than two decades. When she looked out of her front window Sunday morning, she thought the whole neighborhood would go up in flames.
"There was smoke coming out. I thought our houses, with these trees, it was going to jump from tree to tree," Plewman said.
Firefighters say the fire is also suspicious because it started outside.
Neighbor Beverly Lund also has her suspicions.
"It's empty, so it's kind of an attractive place to hang out if you want a place to hang out for kids. We have heard fireworks in the neighborhood," she said.
Investigators say fireworks could not have instantly sparked a house fire, but if it was an hour or two before it's a possibility.
They say the same people questioning the fire in the neighborhood, are the same ones who saved it from being worse.
"Fortunately we had a lot of people call when they saw the column and definitely alerted us in enough time to save the neighborhood," Schaeffer said.
Firefighters say two-thirds of the home is heavily damaged. Structural engineers will come in and determine whether or not the home is a total loss.
There were no reported injuries and the house was vacant at the time of the fire. It is listed for sale and has been on the market for about four months for $219,900.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Comments