Smoke alarms save NW Bend family from house fire

Thanks to smoke alarms that awakened them, a northwest Bend man, his young son and their dog escaped a fire that caused $80,000 damage to their home early Sunday morning, a fire official said, crediting the alarms with saving their lives.

Firefighters responded shortly after midnight to the reported fire at a home in the 2600 block of Northwest Nordeen Way on Awbrey Butte, Deputy Fire Marshal Susie Maniscalco said.

They arrived to find everyone was out of the house, which was filled with heavy smoke, she said.

The resident said he had been burning wood in the fireplace Saturday evening before going to bed, the official said. The family awakened a few hours later to the sound of smoke alarms and light smoke throughout the home, which they quickly evacuated.

Crews forced access into the fireplace chase and walls surrounding the firebox and flue, quickly knocking down the blaze before it got into the attic space, Maniscalco said.

Fire investigators determined the blaze began inside the fireplace chase and behind the wood-burning fireplace, which was equipped with a natural gas fireplace burner. Maniscalco said they couldn’t determine if the fireplace or natural gas piping had malfunctioned or failed.

The fireplace was installed with proper permits and had just recently been cleaned by a certified chimney sweep, she added.

There were no injuries in the fire, which caused $60,000 in damage to the structure and $20,000 to its contents. A total of 15 firefighting personnel responded to the scene, Maniscalco said, adding that the home is insured.

“This family narrowly escaped what could have been a tragedy, as many fatal fires start at night,” Maniscalco wrote in a news release.

“Smoke alone won’t necessarily wake you up. In fact, the toxic fumes could put you into an even deeper sleep and often, victims never wake up,” she added. “It is a fact that working smoke alarms saved this family’s life.”

“The homeowners did all of the right things,” Maniscalco said at the scene. “They had the proper permits when they installed the wood stoves, and they also recently had it cleaned by a chimney sweep.

“But most importantly, they had working smoke alarms throughout the whole house, and they had evacuation plans — and that was critical ino their survival,” she said.

Maniscalco urged residents to “check and test your smoke alarms today. The Bend FIre Department offers free assistance with the replacement of missing or non-working smoke alarms. For help, call us at 541-322-6300.”