News Reports
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Clogged dryer vent ignites home
By ROSALIO AHUMADA
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: November 10, 2006, 05:23:01 AM PST
A poorly maintained laundry dryer apparently started a fire Thursday morning that gutted part of a house in Modesto's airport neighborhood, officials said.
A single mother and five children ages 2 to 11 years old, were displaced by the fire, said Modesto Fire Department Battalion Chief Hugo Patino.
He said Red Cross officials on Thursday afternoon were helping the family find a place to stay.
They were evacuated from the home after the fire started and no injuries were reported, Patino said.
The dryer was outside on the north side of the house under a carport.
Patino said the fire, which started near the dryer exhaust port, appears to be accidental.
"It looks like it wasn't maintained and the lint had accumulated," Patino said. "If you don't clear out that lint, the hot air that blows inside keeps building up in there and has nowhere to go. It will just heat up until it starts a fire."
Firefighters responded to the report of a two-alarm fire at 1746 Monterey Ave., less than a block west of the Modesto Airport, shortly after 11 a.m.
Firefighters who arrived first spotted fire coming from the exterior on the north side of the house, Patino said.
The flames had spread inside the house and into the attic, gutting the home and causing an estimated $100,000 in damage, he said.
The fire also spread to the property to the north of the house, scorching a car parked in the driveway.
Patino said 29 firefighters had the fire under control in about 20 minutes and kept it from spreading further.
Firefighters at the airport responded first, since the fire was initially reported on airport grounds.
Patino said the airport fire crew members committed themselves to the house fire until other firefighters arrived, then returned to the airport, which is their primary responsibility.
Bee staff writer Rosalio Ahumada can be reached at 578-2394 or rahumada@modbee.com.