An intense fire that heavily damaged a house on Red Oak Cutoff Monday caused ammunition inside the residence to explode and prompted a response from two fire departments.
Firefighters with Lake Hamilton and Morning Star fire departments responded to the fully involved structure fire at 748 Red Oak Cutoff at around 10:15 a.m. Monday, and were still putting out hot spots at around 2:45 p.m. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation.
The home reportedly contained live rounds of ammunition, which exploded as a result of the fire. Lake Hamilton Deputy Fire Chief Doug Davey said the exploding ammunition did not affect how firefighters worked to control the flames.
"When we arrived, we could hear the ammunition dispatch warned about going off. Since the rounds were exploding and not being fired from a gun, it did not create much additional danger to firefighters," Davey said.
A total of nine firefighters and five apparatuses from both departments were on scene for several hours attempting to put out the fire, he said.
Although they were reportedly unable to save the home, no other structures were damaged in the process. No injuries were reported in the fire and the American Red Cross arrived on scene to offer assistance to the homeowner.
"A great effort from both departments allowed us to contain the blaze to a single structure and ensure no one was hurt," Davey said.
Local on 01/09/2018