Man suffers burns to hands in barn fire north of Washougal

A man suffered burns to his hands after the outbuilding he was staying in caught fire Tuesday morning north of Washougal.

East County Fire and Rescue responded around 11 a.m. to the 29200 block of Zeek Road to find a 100-by-100-foot barn fully engulfed in flames, according to Fire Chief Mike Carnes.

A resident reported the fire, but crews kept it contained to the outbuilding. The building and its contents were a total loss, and a nearby travel-trailer was destroyed, Carnes said.

The fire cause is undetermined, but Clark County Senior Deputy Fire Marshal Jason Knoble said there were candles and pipe-smoking materials inside. The resident who the property owners were letting stay in the building made it outside.

Several engines and water tenders from the Vancouver Fire Department, two engines from the Camas-Washougal Fire Department and a water tender from Clark County Fire District 3 also responded.

Carnes said it was a challenge for them to gain access to the fire, and firefighters had to stretch hoses quite a ways to reach the flaming barn.

Firefighters were on scene for more than three hours mopping up hotspots.