Garage blaze causes $800K in damages

A garage fire at a residence in the 2000 block of Snead Drive caused about $800,000 damage late Friday night. Fire investigators said Monday they believe the fire was started after a forgotten barbecue grill ignited nearby combustible materials associated with the structure of the balcony.

“It (fire) ran up the inside of the pillar and across the (roof) ridgeline, where it had direct access to the attic,” said Lake Havasu City Fire Department Battalion Chief Mike Quijada, who was on duty that night.

A citizen passing by the residence noticed the fire burning around a barbeque grill on the balcony of the residence and alerted the Havasu homeowners to evacuate the home. Two occupants and two large dogs were safely evacuated from the resident however a gray cat is still reported missing.

Initial investigations determined the possibility the barbecue grill was left on and maybe forgotten resulting in wall material behind composite tiles to heat up and ignite, fire officials said.

Quijada said he made an educated guess to allow fire crews just five minutes to attack the fire from the inside the structure. Based on studies, a trussed roof will collapse in as little as 4 and as many as 12 minutes, the battalion chief said.

“I am confident in what we do. We risk a lot to save a life and we risk a little to save savable property — but we risk nothing to save nothing,” Quijada said. The battalion gave his crews a safe amount of time to save the property but said he could tell the roof was more than likely going to go.

Quijada had the fire crews evacuate the residence and within two minutes of being cleared, the roof fell in, he said.

A 10-15 mph south wind was blowing embers onto the rooftops of nearby residences.

“We were wetting down some homes … it was a concern for quite a while,” Quijada said.

There were no reports of injuries among firefighters or occupants during the incident. One resident of a nearby home was treated and transported to the hospital for smoke inhalation and difficulty breathing.

Lake Havasu City Fire Department responded with six on-duty fire crews including one engine from Desert Hills Fire Department. It took the crews 120 minutes to put the fire out.

“It was a pretty spectacular fire,” Quijada said.

The firefighters were able to recover a number of valuables from the home once the fire was under control and out, he said.

Ten vehicles including a boat, two jet skis, a full-size pickup, two cars, a motorcycle, a quad and a dirt bike parked inside the garage were a total loss, the battalion chief said.

One Havasu fire department was kept in service for the city during the residential assignment on Snead and was dispatched to a possible fire alarm at Havasu Regional Medical Center, a medical assist on Cup Drive, a stabbing on Acoma, a fully involved vehicle fire on Lost Dutchman, a vehicle into a building on Bluecrest Drive and a smell of natural gas near Marlboro Drive and Paseo Del Sol.

Fire crews remained on scene until 9 a.m. Saturday morning to ensure the fire would not rekindle and to assist with the investigation, Quijada said.

You may contact the reporter at jhanson@havasunews.com.