Portland Fire and Rescue responded to a residential fire at 306 SE 79th Ave.
Crews found smoke coming from the house. All occupants were out of the house.
Fire crews immediately began an interior attack on the fire. The fire had gotten into the walls and attic of the home, which made firefighting operations difficult. The cold weather caused water sprayed on the fire to freeze. This made walking on sidewalks and the street extremely hazardous.
After chasing the fire down in the attic, and having part of the roof collapse, fire crews had the fire under control at 6:22 am.
Fire investigators determined that the fire was caused by the fireplace. Heat from the fireplace had caused the wood frame beams to char over time and then ignite this morning.
The residents of the home had been using the fireplace as their primary source of heat over the last couple of days. They hung blankets in passageways to keep the heat in the utilized portion of the home. The working smoke detectors were in the rooms blocked off from the fire. The residents were fortunate to escape the fire without injuries.
This fire was deemed accidental.
