Fire at fourplex caused by extension cord or heater

A Tuesday fire that displaced 11 people living at a fourplex in the Edgewood Park neighborhood likely was caused by an extension cord or a baseboard heater, Vancouver Fire Marshal Heidi Scarpelli said Wednesday.

Both the cord and the heater were near the Christmas tree, which was where the blaze originated, she said.

“Obviously, when the Christmas tree caught fire, the fire was extremely accelerated throughout the house,” Scarpelli said.

Firefighters converged on 3408 E. Evergreen Blvd. at about 10:30 a.m., where they found two units with flames coming out of the doors and windows.

They doused the blaze, but the damage displaced the residents of all four units, Scarpelli said. In all, the incident caused an estimated $225,000 in damage to the building and its contents, Scarpelli said.

The tenants inside the unit where the fire originated were asleep at the time of the blaze, and their smoke alarm was not functioning, Scarpelli said. The tenants did not have renters’ insurance.

She asked people to keep an eye on dry Christmas trees and candles, and to put non-tipping ash trays out for party guests.