Appliance Sparks S.D. Garage Fire, Firefighter Injured

May 10 - Mitchell, S.D. --A local firefighter was injured in a Thursday evening blaze that damaged a garage and two vehicles inside it, another local firefighter/paramedic said.

Joe Degen said at 5:01 p.m. Thursday, crews responded to 29 W. Harmon Dr. Degen said a fellow firefighter was injured while fighting the fire. Degen declined to release the name of the injured firefighter, who went to the emergency room at Avera Queen of Peace Hospital in Mitchell with an arm injury, where he was treated and released.

Degen said when firefighters arrived on the scene of the fire, the home, owned by Dale and Karol Porter, had been evacuated and heavy smoke was rolling out of the garage.

"The house sustained minor smoke damage," Degen said. Crews were on the scene about two hours, he said.

The Porters were the only ones in the house at the time of the fire, Degen said. Neighbors outside the home first noticed the fire, he said.

Degen said the fire likely was caused by a malfunctioning appliance in the garage.

Copyright 2013 - The Daily Republic, Mitchell, S.D.