Shutting a door may have helped contain a house fire on East Wolf Valley Road on Sunday night. The fire was reported at 9:33 p.m. Sunday, April 9, 2017, at 885 East Wolf Valley Road in Heiskell, east of Clinton Highway and west of Interstate 75. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
HEISKELL—Shutting a door may have helped contain a house fire on East Wolf Valley Road on Sunday night.
The fire was reported at 9:33 p.m. Sunday at 885 East Wolf Valley Road in Heiskell, in Anderson County northeast of Clinton Highway and west of Interstate 75.
It was confined to one room at the front of the house, and to a mattress in a bedroom, said Matthew Burrell, chief of the Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department.
The homeowner shut the bedroom door and put towels or blankets under the door, Burrell said.
Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze with a single hose. Damage was limited to about 10 percent of the home, Burrell said.
There were no injuries to residents or firefighters. The cause had not been determined as of Sunday night.
Authorities believe that shutting a door during a fire can make a difference. Firefighters say a closed door is one of the best pieces of firefighting and lifesaving equipment because it can help keep a fire from growing, limit damage to a home, and possibly save lives.
It’s advice that’s been shared by the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office in a “Close the Door” campaign. Even if you escape from your house during a fire, shut the door when you leave if you can, firefighters say. That will help limit oxygen to the fire. Firefighters also recommend sleeping with bedroom doors closed if possible, and keeping fire doors closed.
It’s the second time in the past month that the act of shutting a door has been credited with helping to limit the damage of a fire. In March, the Oliver Springs Fire Department said a woman who shut a bedroom door after finding an electrical outlet on fire in a bedroom likely prevented further damage to her home.
The Sunday night fire on East Wolf Valley Road was initially reported as fully involved. The Andersonville Volunteer Fire Department responded. So did the Claxton Volunteer Fire Department and Rural/Metro. There were two tankers, two engines, a rescue truck, and 14 firefighters.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
Shutting a door may have helped contain a house fire on East Wolf Valley Road on Sunday night. The fire was reported at 9:33 p.m. Sunday, April 9, 2017, at 885 East Wolf Valley Road in Heiskell, east of Clinton Highway and west of Interstate 75. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Reader Kevin Rice helped provide initial scanner call information for this story.
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