A Gering mobile home sustained significant damages during a fire Monday, displacing the residents of the home.
Gering and Scottsbluff fire departments responded at about 6:40 pm to the report of a structure fire on Ridge Drive. Gering Fire Chief Nathan Flowers told the Star-Herald that arriving firefighters found a significant amount of smoke coming from the mobile home. Firefighters assessed the fire and found the source of the fire to be in a bathroom in the rear of the mobile home.
Flowers said the occupants of the home had already evacuated, and firefighters extinguished the fire and ventilated the home. The origin of the fire was determined to be a fire burning in a trash can in the bathroom. Occupants of the home said that the home was being renovated, and there was no gas service to the home. A resident of the home had lit a fire in a trash can and left the fire burning. Upon returning, the resident found the fire had escaped the trash can and was burning curtains and other materials.
People are also reading…
Fortunately, Flowers said, no one was injured. The fire could have spread quickly, he said. The home sustained $3,000 in damages.
Firefighter Ministry organizer Carissa Schank told the Star-Herald that the organization provided aid to two adults and one child displaced due to the fire.
The American Red Cross was also notified to offer assistance.
The fire serves as a reminder for people to take care with heating sources in their home.
Flowers said firefighters do not advise using fire as a heating source inside the home, unless in a properly constructed structure, such as a fireplace or stove. He said he advises against such use in mobile homes, which tend to be vulnerable to fires that spread quickly.
During the winter months, use of alternative sources such as space heaters are often used. Space heaters draw large amounts of electricity, Flowers said, so people should be sure to purchase a surge protector.
Schank told the Star-Herald that the organization also provided assistance to a family of eight affected by a fire in the Sidney community. The cause of that fire at a home on Rancho Drive is reported to be under investigation.
The American Red Cross is also reported to be providing aid in the Sidney fire.
.