Cigarette causes house fire near busy corridor in east Mitchell, crews contained blaze within 30 min.
Jul. 15—MITCHELL — A discarded cigarette caused a house fire Friday on the east side of Mitchell.
According to Mitchell Fire Marshall Shannon Sandoval, a resident near the house that was set ablaze Friday disposed of a cigarette outside of their home, which caused the fire to break out a little over an hour after the cigarette was discarded.
At around 2 p.m. Friday, Mitchell firefighters responded to the house fire on the 600 block of East Fourth Avenue near Burr Street. Crews managed to extinguish the blaze within less than 30 minutes upon arrival, Sandoval said.
No fatalities were reported from the fire. After crews put out the blaze, a man dressed in street clothes was cleared to enter the home toward the alley with firefighters. Moments later, the man safely exited the home while carrying a dog that appeared to be responsive.
According to Sandoval, who was on scene assisting crews, the estimated amount of damages to the home are hovering around $10,000 to $15,000.
A portion of East Fourth Avenue was blocked off while a team of firefighters put out the blaze. The street was reopened to traffic around 2:45 p.m.
