Fire damages garage in Salmon Creek

A fast-moving garage fire damaged a house in the Salmon Creek area on Friday, according to Clark County Fire District 6.

Firefighters were dispatched at 12:42 p.m. to a house in the 12700 block of Northeast 11th Place. Residents had reported smelling something emanating from the garage and opened their door to see flames and smoke, according to fire district spokesman Dave Schmitke.

Crews could see the plume of smoke from their fire stations and arrived to find flames shooting out of the garage, according to Schmitke. The garage is located on the ground floor of the two-story home.

Schmitke said flames had already spread to a nearby travel trailer and damaged the front end of a new pickup.

The fire was spreading so quickly that firefighters didn’t wait to hook up to a hydrant and immediately attacked the flames with water from their tanks. They brought the fire under control in 20 minutes, Schmitke said.

“We stopped it at the laundry room,” he said. “We were able to save the structure, which was surprising considering how fast it was spreading.”

The contents of the house were heavily damaged by smoke and water, however.

One resident suffered a minor injury while escaping the fire. She was treated on the scene, Schmitke said.

The fire remains under investigation by the Clark County Fire Marshal’s Office, he said. The Vancouver Fire Department assisted.