[UPDATE 4:37 p.m.] Fire in Eureka, Firefighters Clearing Building Room by Room

At approximately 3 p.m. a fire broke out in a building on 3rd and Q Street in Eureka. The occupants are being evacuated.

According to the scanner, “Fire knocked down, checking for extension, primary search still in progress.”

A minute later came, “All clear on the second floor, and continuing to check for extension.”

We’ll update when we know more.

UPDATE 3:13 p.m.: Scanner traffic states, “All clear on the second floor, and continuing to check for extension.”
This was followed by “Squad 8174 has been released” which would indicate the fire is being controlled.

UPDATE 4:26 p.m.: According to Tamra McCullough, resident of the apartment building. Her neighbor left food on the stove and the stove caught on fire. The fire spread to a couch and the apartment received smoke damage.

McCullough said, one of the residents used a gas mask to go into the unit and make sure no one else was in it. The resident also attempted to put out the fire. There were no injuries.

Photos and information provided by Bobby Kroeker.

UPDATE 4:37 p.m.:

At 2:53 PM on October 20, 2015, Humboldt Bay Fire responded to a reported structure fire at 232 Q Street. The first arriving battalion chief reported moderate smoke coming from a second floor apartment of a two-story apartment building. The first arriving apparatus quickly pulled a hose line and extinguished the fire (confined to the kitchen) while the second arriving engine initiated a search to look for any trapped occupants. Fortunately, all occupants were safely outside before fire units arrived. During the course of their search, firefighters located two cats and removed them from the residence. Additional units provided assistance with ventilation, salvage and removal of fire damaged contents. Damage was confined to one room, but the residence’s common areas had smoke damage throughout.

No injuries were reported, damage estimate is $15,000. 15 firefighters responded, the fire was extinguished in less than five minutes with crews remaining on scene for 45 minutes.

The cause and origin investigation shows the fire was caused by an unattended pot of cooking oil left heating on the stove top. Damage was limited to the kitchen due in part to the occupant’s use of two fire extinguishers to partially extinguish the fire.

Humboldt Bay Fire reminds all residents to ensure they have working smoke detectors in the living and sleeping areas of their houses and to have a fire exit plan.