Garage fire displaces Sequim couple near Sunland

A couple safely escaped a fire on Thursday night (March 21) that spread from their garage and shop to parts of their home.

Battalion Chief Stef Anderson with Clallam County Fire District 3 said the fire was reported at 8:10 p.m. at the 1200 block of Holland Road, southeast of the Sunland development.

Homeowners were alerted to the fire by a rate-of-rise heat detector in the shop before calling 9-1-1, she said.

Firefighters arrived to discover dark smoke coming out of the two-story home’s front eaves, and an attached shop had a fully involved fire with flames venting out of the garage doors.

“Effective knockdown was achieved,” Anderson said, as “(the) fire had extended into the attic of the residence as well as through various vent spaces into the house.”

Firefighters entered the home’s front door and encountered light smoke on the first floor and thick smoke on the second floor, she said.

“Multiple crews cycled through pulling ceiling, extinguishing fire in the attic, and ventilating the structure until all fire was confirmed out and visibility was clear,” Anderson said.

Its cause remains under investigation.

The fire district responded with multiple engines and vehicles with mutual aid from Clallam County Fire District 2 and Port Angeles Fire District.

The home is insured, Anderson said, and the couple slept in a hotel that night.

Just after the call for the fire at 8:13 p.m., Fire District 2 covered a medical call for District 3 from Jennie’s Boulevard that required Life Flight transport from the Sequim helipad off Fifth Avenue to Harborview Medical Center, Anderson said.

Photo courtesy Clallam County Fire District 3/ A fire spread from a garage into an adjoining house on March 21 on the 1200 block of Holland Road.

Photo courtesy Clallam County Fire District 3/ A fire spread from a garage into an adjoining house on March 21 on the 1200 block of Holland Road.