[quote style=”2″]Fire May Have Been Caused by Cigarette[/quote]
Tuesday’s fire in Umatilla is the second most costly in the fire district’s history.
The fire destroyed four homes on Pheasant Ridge in South Hill, and the fire loss total will be “well over” $500,000, Umatilla Rural Fire Protection District Chief Mike Roxbury said Wednesday.
“This is the second biggest fire loss we’ve had in Umatilla,” Roxbury said. “It’s second only to the Port of Umatilla fire (in 2001), which was over a million.”
Tuesday’s fire originated in the back yard at 2644 Pheasant Ridge and may have started with a cigarette, based on witness statements. Because the homes were completely destroyed, Roxbury said investigation into the cause would be difficult.
“Wind-driven grass fires and no green space, that’s just a recipe for disaster. It doesn’t matter how close you are to a fire department. With 40 mph winds, no one can respond that fast,” he said. “None of the four homes had green space around them. One house did, and it’s fine. They had a big yard that slowed down the fire and allowed us to stop it from spreading. The green space around that home saved the rest of the homes in the area.”
The four homes destroyed each had a wooden porch adjacent to a hill with open brush. The homes did not have rear lawns. The home at 2644 had a retail market value of $97,070, according to Umatilla County Tax Assessment records, and the homes destroyed were all on adjacent lots.
Umatilla dispatched firefighters to the area at 2:43 p.m. Tuesday; the last truck left the scene at 3 a.m. – more than 12 hours later. Numerous local departments also responded to give mutual aid. No injuries were reported, and official damage totals have not been calculated.
The highest property loss total in Umatilla was the “Two Rivers Fire,” which began in a wood chip fire at the Boise Cascade facility at the Port of Umatilla in July 2001. That fire threatened industrial plants at the port, Two Rivers Correctional Institution and about 50 homes near Hat Rock State Park, according to an executive order for emergency support issued by Gov. John Kitzhaber.
