Fire roars through Kalispell shop
Flames roar through the roof of a workshop in south Kalispell on Tuesday afternoon. Kim Varga/Daily Inter Lake
Area firefighters spray water after dousing a residence with foam. Nate Chute/Daily Inter Lake
Firefighters spray water onto a garage after dousing it with foam on Tuesday. Nate Chute/Daily Inter Lake
Area firefighters remove various items from inside a resident's garage after dousing the building with foam. Nate Chute/Daily Inter Lake
Firefighters from six fire departments battled a structure fire Tuesday afternoon that gutted a workshop in the 1900 block of Fifth Avenue East in south Kalispell.
The woman who discovered the fire was treated on the scene for minor smoke inhalation. She was the only person injured.
South Kalispell Fire Chief Chris Yerkes said the fire, which occurred in a detached workshop and office space next to a family home, appears to have started in a wood-burning stove. The nearby home was not damaged.
When the South Kalispell Fire Department was paged out to the fire about 2:45 p.m., Yerkes said he could see smoke from where he was in Columbia Falls. At the fire's height, flames were visible from U.S. 93.
One end of the building was completely engulfed and flames had spread throughout the attic when the first fire trucks arrived, Yerkes said. The building's roof collapsed early during the fire.
"Hot, a lot of flames and a lot of black smoke," Yerkes said in describing his initial impression of the fire.
After receiving a report from police that a woman might still be inside the workshop, firefighters were beginning to enter the burning building when she was found, unharmed, at a nearby residence.
The workshop was packed with belongings, reportedly for a garage sale the homeowner was planning for this weekend. According to a neighbor, the homeowner runs a day care but no children were present when the fire started.
Firefighters, who closed off the street leading to the property, were still mopping up hot spots at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
About 60 firefighters from the South Kalispell, Kalispell, Somers, Evergreen, Smith Valley and West Valley fire departments responded to the fire.
Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com