Two people were killed in a fire Tuesday night in the Sifton area, just outside of Vancouver city limits.
Vancouver fire crews were dispatched at 7:16 p.m. to 6901 N.E. 149th Court for a report of a residential fire with people trapped inside.
Firefighters found an unconscious woman inside the home under rubble, after the ceiling collapsed, and an already deceased man. The Vancouver Fire Department said in a news release Wednesday that the woman was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The fire department did not identify the victims.
The first fire engine had arrived within four minutes and found heavy flames billowing from the front of the single-story house. Vancouver Fire Station 4 is just a few hundred yards south of the home. County property records indicate it is a double-wide manufactured home built in 1996.
Firefighters applied water immediately, putting out a large portion of the blaze. Additional crews arrived and went inside the home to search for occupants and extinguish hot spots. Their search was made difficult because of the collapsed ceiling, which covered the living area with sheetrock and insulation, according to the fire department.
The woman was located under the debris and removed from the house. Her medical care was turned over to medics, who took her to the hospital. A second occupant, the deceased man, was located a short time later, the fire department said.
No firefighter injuries were reported.
A total of five engines, a ladder truck and two battalion chiefs responded to the scene.
Assistant Clark County Fire Marshal Curtis Eavenson said a preliminary investigation indicates that the fire was ignited by a cigarette. It is unclear if the fire started by improperly discarded smoking materials or a cigarette was accidentally dropped, but the fire’s point of origin suggests something along those lines.
Eavenson said he believes the people who were killed were the only occupants of the home.
The fire caused about $150,000 worth of damage to the house and its contents, he said.
