SE Bend family’s BBQ goes awry; fire damages 2 duplexes and 2 homes
(Update: Adding video, more on fire cause, damage)
No injuries reported; damage to four structures totals $350,000
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A fire ignited by a family's charcoal briquette barbecue on a back deck damaged four structures, including two duplexes, on or near Southeast Wilson Avenue in Bend late Friday afternoon, officials said.
The initial call came in around 3:50 p.m. of a fire at a home in the 600 block of Southeast Wilson Avenue.
Bend Fire tweeted around 4 p.m. that crews were "on scene of a structure fire with two houses on fire and a possible third."
Initial reports from the scene indicated all residents evacuated and that at least one house fire was in the attic, with flames coming from the roof.
Fire crews moved to the roof of the first structure that caught fire and used chain saws to break through the the ventilation holes, in case an immediate rescue was needed.
Battalion Chief Trish Connolly said investigators determined the fire was caused by a charcoal briquette barbecue on the back deck of one of the duplexes.
"Embers fell on the deck, caught the deck on fire," she said. "By the time they noticed, it had a good head on it."
Witness video indicated a tall Ponderosa pine was ablaze behind one home in the early stages.
Connolly said the resident whose deck caught fire spotted the blaze and quickly alerted his neighbors. Crews aggressively attacked the fires and stopped them from spreading further.
Connolly said there were two interior attic fires on duplexes along Wilson Avenue and two exterior fires on homes behind the duplex on Sun Lane that sustained damage to their decks and the back side of their homes.
In total, four structures were involved, with six residential units, she said.
Losses were estimated at $100,000 for each duplex, along with $75,000 in contents lost in one duplex and $50,000 in the other. The exterior damage to the two homes was estimated at $25,000.
Crews had stopped the fires at all four structures by 4:40 p.m., with no injuries reported, Connolly said. They remained on scene for some time, putting out hot spots and in overhaul operations.
Connolly said fire crews from Sisters-Camp Sherman and Redmond firefighters provided mutual-aid assistance at the scene, while a Cloverdale Fire unit helped respond to other emergency calls.
Connolly said the fire was a costly reminder for everyone to handle barbecues with extreme caution, especially with the expected heat wave this weekend.
She also urged homeowners to ensure that they have enough defensible space between their home and any surrounding trees or brush.
