Winds spark NW Prineville fire; chicken coop, storage building burn but home spared, no people or pets hurt
PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) – Strong winds caused a fire early Wednesday that burned a small chicken coop and a nearby storage building in northwest Prineville. But a neighbor alerted the home's occupants, including several dogs and other pets, and all escaped unharmed - even the chickens.
“All the chickens were happily running around the yard while we were there,” Crook County Fire & Rescue Division Chief Russell Deboodt said.
Firefighters arrived shortly after 3 a.m. at a small one-story home in the 800 block of NW Ewen Street to find an attached storage building at the rear of the house on fire, Deboodt said.
Crews stretched a hose line to knock down the flames, then quickly entered the attached home to search for occupants and any fire extension. They found no one still inside, and the home’s living area sustained minimal fire or smoke damage.
Deboodt said the fire was determined to be accidental, caused by a heat lamp in a small chicken coop near the storage structure.
“The strong winds caused a portable car shelter to land on the chicken coop, dislodging the heat lamp,” the fire official said.
An American Red Cross disaster team was contacted to assist the residents. Prineville Police, Cascade Natural Gas and Pacific Power provided mutual-aid assistance.
