It could have been a different story with Wednesday night's Pillager house fire, where a family of three was displaced.
Pillager Fire Chief Randy Lee said Thursday the smoke detectors in the trailer home on the corner of River Street and Ironwood Avenue were not working. Lee said with the detectors not working, if the family was asleep when the fire started "it could have been a different outcome." The family, he said, could have been injured, or worse.
The homeowner, Ed Carlson, lives in the house with his fiancee and adult son. They stayed at the neighbor's home while the firefighters fought the fire. The American Red Cross was called to help them.
The fire was reported at at 5:58 p.m. and 17 Pillager firefighters responded. No mutual aid was called.
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Pillager Fire Chief Randy Lee said Thursday the smoke detectors in the trailer home on the corner of River Street and Ironwood Avenue were not working.
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Lee said when firefighters arrived, flames were billowing out the windows of the home, mainly in the northwest bedroom area. Lee said firefighters were able to save part of the trailer home, but there was interior smoke and heat damage throughout. With the smoke and heat damage, Lee said the trailer home, which consisted of several additions, was a total loss. The loss was valued about $55,000, he said.
Lee said the cause of the fire appears to be smoking materials. He said the homeowner was smoking and thought he may have missed the ashtray when he was talking on the phone. Lee said the ashtray was in the bedroom where the fire started.
Firefighters were on scene for about four and-a-half hours with four fire trucks. Lee said the fire was difficult to battle as there were a lot of little rooms full of storage items.
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"The fire just took off and was going good," said Pillager Fire Chief Randy Lee. "They didn't notice the fire until they noticed the smoke because the smoke detectors weren't working."
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"The fire just took off and was going good," said Lee. "They didn't notice the fire until they noticed the smoke because the smoke detectors weren't working."
Lee reminds and encourages residents to check their smoke detectors twice a year to make sure the batteries are good and to make sure the detectors are working properly. A good time, Lee said, is to check detectors during the two seasonal changes for daylight-saving time when the clock springs ahead and falls back an hour. Daylight-saving time begins March 8.
JENNIFER STOCKINGER may be reached at jennifer.stockinger@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5851. Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jennewsgirl .
