Pine Ridge blaze attributed to garage heat lamp

At 9:54 a.m. Sunday, Pine Haven and Moorcroft Volunteer Fire Departments responded to a structure fire on Pine Ridge, east of both townships. A garage and addition to a cabin was ablaze.

Upon preliminary investigation, the father and daughter who reside at this property were found not at home when rescue crews arrived.

Two fire units responded from Pine Haven and Moorcroft arrived with six trucks including fire, water and air tank recharging components. Before crews completely contained the blaze, Sundance Fire Department was asked to bring over another water truck as the original tanks were getting low, Moorcroft Fire Chief Rusty Williamson explains.

While the garage and addition was a loss, the firemen saved the cabin. “The interior team went a solid hour without a break. They each went through four air packs before relief arrived, showing tremendous [fortitude],” says Williamson.

Crews departed from the scene at 3 p.m. with Pine Haven firemen Don Lancaster and Dave Hull returning around 10:30 p.m. to eradicate a hot spot attempting to reignite on the property.

After the blaze was quenched, fire marshal Doug Leis investigated and determined the fire to have been started by a heat lamp in said garage. According to Williamson, the home owner was keeping the space warm for a goat that was being kept inside. The heat lamp was knocked to the floor by the animal and started the burn.

“The guys did an amazing job,” Williams commends the efforts of the volunteers who fought the flames for five hours. “We don’t have a lot of structure fires, but when we do, the community can be proud that there are a bunch of young guys who put in a lot of hours to train and have the skill set to spend a full hour on an initial attack.”

The goat was the only casualty of this incident.

The two municipalities have an automatic response agreement ensuring that both show up for any fire call which proved to “work extremely well”, according to Lancaster. He also warns people, “Be extra careful as the days get colder, with space heaters, heat lamps, anything like that, near any combustible materials.”