A fire destroyed a house at 1506 W. 19th Ave. in Pine Bluff on Monday but no one was injured.
None of the residents of the house were inside when the fire occurred, Pine Bluff Fire and Emergency Services Captain Harold Clark said. About 12 or 13 Pine Bluff Fire and Emergency Services firefighters responded to extinguish the blaze, he said.
“The biggest thing that I worry about is safety, watching out for the person on the scene and bystanders,” Clark said. “We want to keep everyone hydrated and everyone safe. The temperatures do play a role. … The firefighters did a great job of getting here in a timely fashion. They jumped right of top of it.”
Pine Bluff firefighters were dispatched by 911 around 9:50 a.m. Clark said. The firefighters had controlled the blaze within one hour of the emergency call, he said.
He credited firefighters with preventing the blaze from spreading to neighboring houses.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“One of our priorities was making sure that neither one of those [neighboring] properties were affected by the fire,” Clark said. “One of our fire marshals is on scene and we are going to see if we can determine the origin and cause of the fire.”
Firefighters dealt with temperatures in the lower 90s before they even reached the intense heat generated by the fire. The heat coming from the house could be felt at least 100 feet away and toxic gray smoke filled the air.
A burnt mattress was placed in the front yard, siding fell and the roof had caved in by 10:30 a.m. Firefighters used oxygen masks and fought the blaze from the ground and from a ladder truck. Firefighters drank water and stepped in the shade after they had controlled the blaze.
“We are making sure our personnel are taking plenty of breaks and staying hydrated,” Clark said.