May 13, 2001

PRESS RELEASE

To: Newsroom

For Immediate Release

Contact: Brian A. Crawford, Public Information Officer

Phone: 673-6652, cell: 455-2609, page: 675-2137

Broadmoor Terrace Home Damaged by Fire

Shreveport firefighters spent over 20 minutes this afternoon extinguishing a hard to reach fire that caused heavy damage to a Broadmoor Terrace home. Fire communications officers at Caddo 911 received a call reporting smoke coming from the roof of the home, located at 502 Americana, at 1:35 p.m. When fire crews arrived from the department’s East 70^th and Youree Drive stations and made entry through the front door of the residence, fire and smoke rolled from the ceiling of the home’s foyer.

The fire appeared to be coming through the entrance’s light fixture, leading fire officials to believe its origin was in the home’s attic. Additional fire crews were sent into the attic through the garage entrance. Once in the attic, firefighters said that the fire was difficult to reach and that only after crawling across timbers, through insulation, and over the home’s air handling/heating unit, were they able to reach the blaze and extinguish it. The fire was officially listed as being under control at 1:59 p.m.

Neighbors reported the owners of the property traveled extensively with their motor home and were out of town. Fire investigators were on the scene trying to determine an exact cause of the fire which may have started from the light fixture or the air unit. Fire damage was listed as heavy to the attic portion of the home with some noted in the entrance way. Portions of the home’s interior did suffer damage from the water used to extinguish the fire. In order to minimize property damage, the fire department makes every effort to use the least intrusive and damage extinguishing method possible. Unfortunately, when there is a fire in the attic, the water used to save the structure ultimately causes damage to the rooms located below. Tarpaulins are used by firefighters to protect furniture and valuables from further damage after the fire is extinguished. No injuries were reported during this incident. ###