VIDEO/PHOTOS: One person was injured and two were displaced after a house fire in the West Central neighborhood in Spokane on Wednesday afternoon. The Spokane Fire Department says crews responded to a reported porch fire around 4 p.m. near West Gardner Avenue and North Cochran Street. The fire department says when crews arrived, flames were visible coming from the roof and neighbors were attempting to put out the flames. Additional fire crews arrived and began an interior search while other firefighters ventilated the structure by opening portions of the roof and ceiling to access the fire spreading through the attic.
SFD says the fire was controlled within 20 minutes, but the home sustained significant damage. SFD says one person was transported to the hospital with a knee injury sustained while helping to run a hose to the house. The American Red Cross was also contacted to assist two displaced residents with temporary housing. Fire investigators determined that the fire originated when a neighbor dropped a lit cigarette onto the ground, which was covered with a fine layer of Cottonwood pollen. The highly flammable pollen ignited and rapidly spread across the yard, through nearby shrubbery, and onto the porch, eventually extending into the home.
