OAKHURST — Two fire calls within a matter of minutes Friday afternoon taxed CAL FIRE resources as firefighters in multiple engines responded to a large blaze off Highway 49 and a smaller fire along Road 423.
Firefighters battle blaze off Highway 49 and Covey Court (photos by Leonard Andrenacci)
The larger fire call came in just after 1:30 p.m.
That fire, at a residence off Highway 49 and Covey Court near Sierra Pines Church, reportedly sparked in a detached garage which also had a small attached apartment.
Both the garage and apartment as well as several vehicles inside the garage were badly burned in the fire, which drew coordinated responses from CAL FIRE together with personnel from the California Highway Patrol, Madera County Sheriff’s Office and Sierra Ambulance.
At that blaze, two senior citizens suffered minor injuries, according to first responders.
An elderly woman received first degree burns on one forearm. She was treated at the scene but declined to go to the hospital.
An elderly man on supplemental oxygen suffered smoke inhalation escaping from the blaze and was also treated at the scene. He also declined transport to the hospital.
A dog received minor burns in Friday afternoon’s blaze off Highway 49
A dog was also caught inside one structure during the fire but somehow escaped with only minor burns.
Investigators estimated damages at $200,000.
Firefighters quickly extinguished a small structure fire earlier Friday along Road 423 at Wortham Road
About half an hour earlier, just after 1 p.m., firefighters responded to a smaller fire along Road 423 and Wortham.
That fire, which was contained in less than 30 minutes, resulted in an estimated $30,000 in smoke damage to a small structure.
No one was injured in that incident.
The cause of both blazes remain under investigation.
