Firefighters work to put out the first blaze at a home near the intersection of Eagle Trace Drive and Lanarkshire Drive near State Road 135 around 3:40 p.m. Tuesday in White River Township. The fire was believed to be out until about five hours later, around 8:30 p.m. when a fire was reported again at the home.
Firefighters from multiple agencies responded twice to a house fire in White River Township after it rekindled Tuesday night.
First responders were initially called around 3:40 p.m. to a home at the intersection of Eagle Trace Drive and Lanarkshire Drive near State Road 135 after a caller reported the house across the street was on fire.
A passing neighbor alerted occupants of the home to the fire. He knocked on the door and got them and their pets out of the home without injuries.
When firefighters arrived, they saw heavy smoke coming from the home and found a fire in a room above the garage, which had spread to the home’s attic, said Jeremy Pell, chief of the White River Township Fire Department.
The fire was challenging because it was in the attic, Pell said.
Firefighters got the initial fire under control quickly, but the home sustained significant damage. The occupants were displaced as a result of the fire, and Fire Angels, Inc., a local nonprofit which specializes in helping those affected by house fires, is providing support, he said.
A few hours later, around 8:35 p.m., firefighters were called again to the home after the same neighbor reported a second fire. When firefighters arrived, they found fire and heavy smoke again, and decided to approach it using the same methods as before, Pell said.
Fighting the fire was difficult due to the roofline being steep, but firefighters got it under control in about 20 minutes, he said.
While firefighters do not know the cause of the fires, they believe the second one was likely caused by an ember that rested in a small space — evading detection, Pell said.
After the first fire, first responders pulled the ceiling down and worked to get all the insulation out. They also put a lot of water on the fire and used a thermal camera to see if there were any hot spots. The camera did not detect any, he said.
After the second fire, firefighters spent several hours checking the home to make sure no additional fires could be started, Pell said.
During the initial fire, Two White River Township firefighters sustained injuries resulting from heat exhaustion, and another suffered minor burns. All three are doing fine and were cleared to go back to work, he said.
Fire departments in Bargersville, Franklin, Greenwood and Indianapolis, along with White River Township, responded to the first fire. During the second fire, units from Bargersville, Greenwood and White River Township responded, Pell said.
Both fires are being investigated as a single fire.
