Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Fire damages Bella Vista home
BELLA VISTA — Firefighters responded to a structure fire on Moors Lane on Oct. 1.
No injuries were reported related to this fire, Battalion Chief Ronnie Crupper said, and firefighters have worked with American Red Cross to get resources to the home’s residents.
On arrival, he said, firefighters found the structure roughly 40% involved, with heavy flames in the roof.
There was some difficulty getting adequate water pressure from the hydrant, he added, but firefighters were able to overcome this issue with the use of an additional engine and knock out the fire.
Fire inspector Jason Bowman said this fire appears to be a flue fire.
Residents should be sure to have their flues checked out and ensure their smoke detectors are functioning, he said.
This is the second residential structure fire Bella Vista saw in a single week.
On Sept. 25, firefighters put out a townhouse fire on Alyce Lane, with multiple units suffering extensive damage.
Bowman said this fire’s exact cause is unknown but it is believed to be accidental.
Battalion Chief Chuck Lawson said that everyone made it out of the structures safely but four units saw severe property damage. One unit is almost certainly a total loss and the roof was burned off of two units, he said.
“We were able to save one unit with basically no damage,” he said.
Firefighters were also able to break a window in a burning unit to rescue a cat, he added.
“It turned out about as good as it could, I guess,” he said.
Lawson said he appreciates the help the department gets from Carroll Electric and the American Red Cross.
Townhome fires are especially difficult, he said, because the fire can rapidly spread. In this case, flames quickly spread through the attic, he said.
The stiff winds that day helped this fire spread especially quickly and firefighters primarily worked to limit the flames’ spread, he explained.
“Getting them controlled as quickly as possible is a real challenge,” Lawson said.