A small yurt south of Port Townsend burned to the ground Thursday afternoon.
The approximately 400-square-foot round structure was destroyed after a man living there left several dead birds near the stove to dry them and left the building, according to East Jefferson Fire-Rescue spokesman Bill Beezley.
No one was injured.
The cause of the fire, which was reported at 3:21 p.m., remained under investigation Thursday afternoon.
The 47-year-old man, whom firefighters did not identify, shared the home with its owner, he told firefighters.
She works out of town and had not seen the damage as of Thursday afternoon, he told them.
Once he had put the birds near the stove, the man took his dog for a walk, Beezley said.
“He left for about 20 minutes and didn't know about this [the fire] until he came back and found us here,” Beezley said.
The yurt was located in the 500 block of Hidden Trail Road about 4 miles south of Port Townsend on a dead-end road but less than a mile from a fire station, which contributed to a fast response, Beezley said.