Woman rushed to hospital with smoke inhalation, burns
A fast-moving two-alarm fire in Vancouver’s Harney Heights neighborhood destroyed two townhouses Tuesday morning, sent a woman to the hospital and killed an unknown number of cats.
The woman, who suffered smoke inhalation and burn injuries, was rushed in serious condition by ambulance to a local hospital, said Vancouver firefighter-spokesman Jim Flaherty.
The fire started in the woman’s kitchen and damage was estimated at $220,000.
Before crews arrived, the woman had escaped her burning two-story townhouse and ran across the street to alert a neighbor.
“I heard her screaming for help,” said the neighbor, who declined to be identified. “Her hair was singed and her face was swollen.”
The woman, still in her pajamas, told the neighbor she had fallen asleep and awoke to flames. She said she’d had to leave a number of cats inside. Firefighters later confirmed between 5 and 10 cats were unaccounted for and at least two were dead.
“We may never know the total number of deceased cats,” Flaherty said.
She then collapsed on the sidewalk, the neighbor said.
The woman’s name and condition were not available.
The fire was reported at 10:41 a.m. at 3407 E. 21st St., a two-story townhouse in a neighborhood south of Fourth Plain Boulevard and east of Norris Road. It quickly spread to an adjoining unit. No one was home at the second unit when the fire broke out, Flaherty said.
A thick cloud of black smoke billowed overhead and could be seen by drivers several blocks away. Witnesses inundated 911 with phone calls, prompting Vancouver firefighters to dispatch a second alarm for a total of 35 firefighters, Flaherty said.
“It was a fast-moving fire with intense heat,” he said. “There was such heavy fire on arrival that no one could get inside.”
Allen Cooper was driving his car on Mill Plain Boulevard and heading for the Harney Heights area when he saw the thick plume of smoke. As he got closer, he noticed flames shooting from the upstairs windows.
“The whole thing was gutted,” Cooper said.
Firefighters, arriving six minutes after the call, attacked the blaze from the outside. Some crews battled flames from the roof, while other firefighters doused the fire from below. Most fire damage was done to the top floor of the blue townhouse.
After making entry, firefighters did not find anyone inside.
By 11:30 a.m., the smoldering fire was brought under control.
Clark County Fire District 6 assisted the Vancouver Fire Department in fighting the blaze, while Clark County Fire and Rescue, Clark County Fire District 6 and 3 and the Portland Fire Bureau covered the department’s other emergency calls.
The rental unit’s owners were listed as William and Marla Mebesius of Durham, Ore.
The cause is under investigation.
