OAKHURST — Firefighters are on the scene of a house fire in the Royal Oaks area of town, where the upstairs of a two-story, single-family residence is fully engulfed in flames. The home, which has a shake roof, is located on the northwest corner of Pine Ridge Road and Pine Ridge Way.
The call went out at approximately 10:10 a.m. on Wednesday, Mar. 30, and Engine 12 out of Oakhurst was reported to have been on scene within four minutes.
Also on scene now are Cal Fire Engines 4294, 4275, 4254 and 4255, along with Madera County Fire Engine 8 out of Coarsegold, and Water Tenders 14 and 16.
Breathing Support 14 was called out to supply oxygen tanks for firefighters, enabling them to go inside the structure, despite dense smoke. Breathing Support 19 was also dispatched, as was a crew from PG&E.
A young man, 24, and his autistic brother, 22, were inside the home this morning, when they noticed the smell of smoke. Then, from inside the home, they saw smoke upstairs and immediately ran outside to see that the roof was on fire.
The young man believes that the fire may have started from the chimney of a wood stove. The exact cause of the fire has not been officially determined. Two cats were inside the home at the time, and witnesses say at least one cat made it out and could be seen sprinting across the lawn.
The young men’s father is on his way back to the rented home from Madera at this time.
As of 11 a.m. the flames have been knocked down and the fire was considered contained at 11:24 a.m. The Incident Commander estimates the time for mop-up to be about two hours after containment.
Sierra News Online is on scene and more information will follow as it becomes available.
