Challenges Faced by Portland Crews

Shortly before 7 p.m.on July 7, dispatchers transmitted a box for a house fire at 2985 Luray Terrace in the West Hills section of Portland.

This fire was one of our greatest challenges in recent years. The house was built on stilts on a steep hillside. The second floor was on street level on Luray Terrace with a wooden bridge connecting the house to the garage and the street.

The back of the building was six or seven stories above the next street, Fairfax Terrace. The streets in the West Hills are mostly narrow and twisting around various levels on the steep hillside.


This house was a very small one compared to most others in the area.

The single occupant, a large man, was trapped because the wooden bridge was fully involved as was most of the house. As the first companies were arriving, he jumped from a side window and rolled down the steep grade covered with brambles. He was treated and taken to the hospital by ambulance.

Because of the heavy fire involving the bridge, it was not possible to mount an interior attack. As the fire progressed, it was feared the structure could collapse and fall onto the companies on the lower road.