Fire damages basement of Fruit Valley house

Fire damaged the basement of a house Sunday morning in the Fruit Valley neighborhood.

Crews with the Vancouver Fire Department were dispatched shortly before 4 a.m. to the 2000 block of Simpson Avenue for a report of a structure fire.

One fire truck initially responded to the home to investigate calls about smoke pouring from basement vents, Vancouver firefighter Eva Scherer said. A neighbor reported seeing fire in the basement, and when firefighters arrived, they spotted flames coming from a broken basement window, Scherer said.

The house was searched and turned out to be unoccupied.

Firefighters spent about 20 minutes extinguishing the blaze and remained on scene for about two hours to ensure it didn’t reignite.

A total of 16 firefighters responded, Scherer said.

Damage to the house was largely confined to the basement, she said.

The Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the cause of the blaze.