FORKS — Four family members escaped a burning house uninjured with little more than the clothes they were wearing, Forks-area Fire District 1 Chief Bill Paul said.
There were no injuries in the fire reported at 3:58 a.m. Friday that destroyed the house in the 2000 block of Calawah Way outside the Forks city limits, Paul said.
“They woke up to the sound of popping,” Paul said.
By the time firefighters arrived, the occupants of the house were in their vehicles and about 35 percent of the 1,500-square-foot, four-bedroom structure was on fire before it became fully engulfed in flames, he said.
Flames reached about 20-25 feet high, Paul said.
The fire was extinguished within 45 minutes.
The blaze does not appear to be suspicious but remains under investigation, Paul said.
The house, which had a fireplace and baseboard heat, was valued at $122,000.
Paul said it had smoke detectors, but the occupants said they did not know if they were working.
“They didn’t hear them going off,” Paul said.
The homeowner has fire insurance, he added.
“They weren’t able to grab any personal items except the clothes on their back,” Paul said.
“Nothing was salvageable from the inside.”
The American Red Cross helped the family with emergency housing, Paul said. Fire district personnel in two fire district command vehicles, two support vehicles and two pumpers responded to the fire.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@ peninsuladailynews.com.
A fireman with District 1 Forks examines a structure that burned early Friday morning at 2300 Calawah Way outside the Forks city limits. (Lonnie Archibald for the Peninsula Daily News)
