A fire that broke out in the basement of a Camas house was quickly extinguished by firefighters late Sunday night.
Camas-Washougal Fire Department crews found a vacant single-family structure with flames showing from the basement when they arrived at 223 N.E. Joy St. near Louis Block Park just after 11 p.m.
In a short aggressive interior attack, 17 firefighters put out the flames.
East County Fire & Rescue assisted at the scene.
The owner had been in the process of renovating the house to rent it, said Deputy Fire Marshal Randy Miller. The previous renter, who died, left household goods, furniture and food in the basement, making it difficult for firefighters to walk through. As the firefighters worked, water pooled in the basement, higher than their boots.
Afterward, the house was secured and boarded up.
The cause of the fire, which is believed to have started in the basement, is under investigation by the Camas-Washougal Fire Department and Camas police.
No cause had been determined as of Monday evening.
