Shortly after leaving his house Saturday morning, Jeff Nelson received an alert of an active smoke alarm through his ADT system. The State Fire Marshall’s Office says the structure fire started when a pet sought the doughnuts and snack food on the stove and hit the burner.
Multiple agencies responded to the structure fire at 7720 County Road 104 south of Bayard Saturday, Feb. 12 at 10:44 a.m.
Nelson left the property to attend a birthday party when he received a call from ADT about an active fire alarm in the home, according to Bayard Fire Chief Michael Harimon.
“They had extra supplies they left on the stove,” Harimon said. “They went back to check it and when they opened the door, there was smoke down to about chest level.”
Nelson could see flames rising over the stove through the smoke and went to turn off the burner and attempted to extinguish the fire.
“It had caught the cabinets on fire,” Harimon said.
When the first group of five firefighters arrived on scene, they found fire in the trailer’s kitchen and living room area. The flames were coming out the back of the house, which engulfed a lean-to shed.
“Our crews concentrated on the living area because we didn’t have enough people to do it all,” Harimon said. “Our first crew did a really good job. They were short on people and to save a structure like that – a modular – is a good deal. We were really glad to see Minatare and Gering show up.”
The crews saved the bedrooms on both ends of the residence, which Harimon said is a big deal because it is almost impossible to save the bedrooms when battling a house fire in a mobile home.
Minatare and Gering Fire Departments, Morrill County ALS and Region 21 Emergency Management provided mutual aid. Firefighters worked to contain the fire at the back of the trailer and helped finish the work inside.
The kitchen, dining room, living room and bathroom were destroyed, Harimon said. The bedrooms sustained smoke and heat damage, saving some of the families’ belongings.
The family owned three dogs, three ferrets and a bird inside the residence, but not all the animals made it out of the house. Harimon said they found one dog and a ferret, but he is unsure if the other ferrets were found.
“One of the dogs went out with him, but he couldn’t get back in to save the other dogs because of the smoke level,” Harimon said.
“We did find two dogs deceased,” he said. “One of the dogs was a service animal.”
Firefighters returned to the fire hall around 2:49 p.m.
Bayard Volunteer Fire Department had 12 firefighters on scene along with two engines, two tenders and BLS ambulance. Bridgeport ALS also responded, so Bayard’s ambulance crew could help with the fire and care for one firefighter needing medical attention for heat exhaustion.
Firefighter Ministry was also on scene to assist the family of five with their immediate needs providing them with food, clothing and a motel.