Lightning strike sparks fire in La Pine detached workshop, neighborhood power outage
La PINE, Ore. (KTVZ) – An apparent lightning strike to the roof ignited a fire in a large detached shop in La Pine late Monday afternoon, also blowing out a nearby transformer and knocking out power to the block, fire officials said.
La Pine Rural Fire District crews responded shortly before 5 p.m. to the reported fire on Polar Road, Captain Ty Miller said. An engine, two water tenders and two command vehicles responded, along with two wildland engines from Central Oregon Interagency Dispatch and two Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office units.
Crews arrived to find flames shooting from the rear of the workshop Miller said. They also were threatening two large Ponderosa pine trees adjacent to a dry field between the shop and a neighbor’s home.
La Pine Fire crews quickly doused the fire from the exterior before going in to remove any further threat,
Miller said the fire is believed to have been sparked by a lightning strike to the rear roof of the structure, according a neighbor who witnessed it.
Most of the fire damage was found in the attic space and the back of the roof, but Miller said the quick response and firefighters’ actions meant much of the interior contents were able to be saved.
A quick downpour of rain with the thunderstorm also helped limit the fire’s spread into adjacent trees and dry grasses, he added.
No injuries were reported. Sunriver Fire also assisted by covering medical emergencies in the fire district’s ambulance service area.
