PINEDALE — Friday firefighters from Sublette County Unified Fire (SCUF) were busy responding to multiple fire-related calls.
On Friday, November 13, SCUF was dispatched to the multiple consecutive incidents. A possible electrical fire in a business with a living area in Pinedale on N. Franklin Street, a smoke report at a shop on Crear Lane in Pinedale and then a chimney fire on a shop in Boulder. There were no injuries reported at any of the incidents.
The Franklin Fire had firefighters from Battalions 1, 2, 4 and 5 working the incident. On arrival, fire units
discovered a smoldering fire in the attic space of the building. Due to the property owner detecting the
fire early, calling 911 and the rapid response from SCUF the fire was kept small and limited to the area of
origin.
With other buildings in close proximity to this property, the quick discovery and response prevented this from potentially being a much larger incident. With electrical power being shut off until repairs are made, the Red Cross was activated to assist the family who also live and operate a business in the building. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Another call came in for the smoke report on Crear Lane in Pinedale while fire units were still engaged on the Franklin scene. Fire units from Battalions 1, 2 and 5 responded directly from the first incident. No active fire was found, but a malfunctioning electric hot water heater was determined to be the cause of the
smoke and hot electrical odor in a shop adjacent to a residence. The breaker was turned off to the hot
water heater and the property owner was advised to contact an electrician to inspect the water heater
before turning it back on again.
While fire units were cleaning up gear and equipment from the previous two incidents, a chimney fire in
Boulder was called in. On arrival, SCUF units initiated an attack and extinguished the fire. The structure fire cause and origin was determined to be from a wood burning stove chimney fire. The excessive heat from the fire in the stove pipe ignited the adjacent combustible materials (wood siding on the exterior of the building) where the stove pipe penetrated the building wall, extended to the roof and attic space of a shop with a living area.
A neighbor who was spraying water from a garden hose on the exterior of the structure, correct building techniques (fire breaks in the wall) and the timely response from Battalions 1 and 4 and contributed to minimizing the damage from this chimney fire.
Enough can’t be said about the Sublette County emergency responders. SCUF, Sublette County EMS, Sublette County Sheriff’s Office and Wyoming Highway Patrol all work together as a team every time the calls go out for help. Each organization specializes in their own areas, but each have their part in the wellbeing of our citizens.
Professional responses do not happen by accident either. It requires dedication and commitment with many hours of training and sometimes just plain work. Personnel get tired, resources can be stretched thin and all the things we thought we would do that day don’t get done. One thing is for sure, our community is worth the effort.
If you would like to volunteer or want to be a part of the Sublette County Emergency Response Family
let us know.
