Crews battle two Post Falls fires

By BRIAN WALKER

Staff Writer

POST FALLS — Two structure fires in Post Falls within about nine hours kept firefighters busy late Saturday and Sunday morning.

A house fire at 1615 E. Plaza Drive, reported at 9:05 a.m. Sunday and believed by investigators to have been caused by a curling iron, caused an estimated $30,000 in damage to contents and the structure.

Meanwhile, a fire reported at 11:49 p.m. on Saturday at Plummer Forest Products, 401 N. Potlatch Road, started in the bag house, was extinguished, then spread in the duct system, said Kootenai County Fire and Rescue Chief Warren Merritt.

"The hot temperatures over the weekend made for difficult conditions for our firefighters," Merritt said. "However, there were no issues with heat exhaustion and part of that was due to good conditioning."

When firefighters arrived at the house fire, smoke was billowing from the eaves, Merritt said.

"It appeared to be an attic fire at first, but it originated in the bathroom," he said. "Firefighters had it contained really quickly. Most of the damage was to contents, but there was also some to the structure that will have to be repaired."

No one was home at the time of the fire. A neighbor reported seeing the smoke.

Merritt said the renter had left the home to go to a grocery store when the fire was reported.

Coeur d'Alene Fire assisted KCFR with the incident. Crews were on scene for more than two hours.

With the Plummer Forest Products fire, no equipment was damaged, Merritt said.

"The exact cause of the fire is undetermined, but it appears to have started with a spark," he said.

Merritt said the company has its own fire brigade, but calls the fire department on larger fires.

"For many years, the company has been taking care of small fires here and there, so when they call us we know that it is a working fire," Merritt said.

Coeur d'Alene Fire assisted KCFR, while Hauser Fire personnel covered at a KCFR station during the fire. Crews were on scene about four hours.