UPDATE @ 10:42 a.m.:
A house, dog shed and garage are a total loss after a fire that began in the dog shed Saturday in Twin Twp.
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“It’s a shame at this time of year that these tragic things happen. It’s always smart to try to keep our animals warm but unfortunately this was a sad accident that happened,” said West Alexandria Fire Chief Jeff Schafer.
Preliminary investigation indicated that the fire started from a heat lamp inside the dog house then spread to the home and garage around 3:30 a.m.
The home was “fully involved” upon the arrival of emergency crews to the residence in the 2800 block of Minnich Wysong Road.
“We had fire rolling up about 20 feet in the air,” said Schafer.
Flames grew quickly as wind gusts helped to fuel the fire. Fire doubles in size every 30 seconds, Schafer said.
The family was able to get out of the house quickly and no one was injured.
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Timbers hitting the house alerted the family of the fire. They did have working smoke detectors, Schafer said.
“It’s just a bad day for them,” he said.
About five tankers were called to the scene because of an absence of fire hydrants but crews never ran out of water.
Eaton, Lewisburg, Eldorado, Jasper Twp., and Farmersville helped to extinguish the flames.