Smoke alarm awakens Deschutes River Woods resident to garage fire, stopped from spreading

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A smoke alarm awakened a sleeping Deschutes River Woods resident to a garage fire Wednesday morning. Firefighters stopped the blaze before it could spread into the house, limiting losses to about $7,000 and sparing the three occupants any injuries.

Bend Fire & Rescue responded around 6:15 a.m. to a report of a resident saying smoke was coming from a neighbor’s roof in the 60300 block of Zuni Road, Deputy Fire Marshal Susie Maniscalco said.

“The occupant awoke to the smoke alarm sounding, and then after he discovered the fire, the neighbors alerted him to the smoke that was coming from under the roof,” Maniscalco said.

Crews arrived to find smoke rolling from beneath the eaves of the garage roof and forced the garage door open, she said. They found flames on a shelf in the garage where several appliances and extension cords were plugged into a surge protector.

Though smoke reached into the attic and home, triggering the smoke alarm, the fire was quickly extinguished before it spread from the attic into the main house.

Loss of contents was estimated at $5,000 and damage to the building at $2,000. There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire was electrical in nature, Maniscalco said.

“If the home was not equipped with smoke alarms, the outcome could have been much different,” Maniscalco said.

Bend Fire and Rescue said it wanted to remind residents to test your smoke alarms at least once a month, and replace batteries twice a year. The department offers free home assessments, and can test and replace your smoke alarms at no cost; call 541 322-6300 for assistance.