COLUMBUS, Ind. — Columbus Fire Department investigators are investigating the cause of a California Street fire that destroyed a single family home Monday morning.
Firefighters worked at the scene for approximately four hours and faced numerous challenges, said Capt. Mike Wilson, Columbus Fire Department spokesman. No injuries were reported.
Firefighters were sent to 921 California St. at about 10 a.m. Monday about the fire, and found heavy fire visible from the front of the single story rental home, Wilson said.
As additional firefighters continued their response to the scene, the first arriving engine company accessed three sides of the building and began to prepared hose lines for an interior fire attack. Initial reports indicated that no occupants were at the home when the fire was reported, Wilson said.
With additional crews arriving on the scene soon thereafter, the attack crew went into the home and applied water to the flames. As the attack crew attempted to advance further into the home, the well advanced fire produced extreme heat conditions inside the home that made further advancement difficult. Firefighters operating inside the interior of the home reported that the flames were so intense that the fire attack crew’s application of water had little effect on the flames, Wilson said.
With smoke conditions on the exterior of the home indicating that the fire had spread to additional rooms and the home’s attic space, the scene incident commander ordered the evacuation of firefighters from the interior and called for an exterior defensive attack, which included the protection of a neighboring home at 925 California St., Wilson said.
Firefighters directed numerous water streams into the home from the exterior in an attempt to apply water to the flames. With minimal progress on a deep seated fire and additional indications that the fire had indeed entered the home’s attic, firefighters utilizes a ladder truck to direct an elevated water stream into that attic. This tactic improved conditions, but only temporarily. As firefighters continued to battle the stubborn fire from the safety of the exterior, a portion of the roof collapsed into the home, Wilson said. With a clear opening created above, firefighters elevated the ladder truck over the home and directed the ladder truck’s water stream down on the flames. The fire was soon brought under control and crews were permitted to enter the interior of the home to address hotspots.
The home at 925 California St. sustained minor damage to the home’s vinyl siding caused by radiant heat, Wilson said.
Two pet dogs, located in the rear lawn at 921 California St., were secured by Columbus Animal Care Services. Neither of the dogs were injured during the fire. The rental home, owned by Columbus Rental Property LLC, is considered a total loss estimated at $50,000.
On August 1, 2023, the City of Columbus Fire Department and the Columbus Township Fire Department instituted an Automatic Aid Agreement for working structure fires within both the City of Columbus and Columbus Township. Today’s fire incident was the first working fire incident to occur since the agreement was put into place. Deputy Chief Mark Ziegler, Columbus Fire Department Deputy Chief of Operations, said that the recent automatic aid agreement proved its worth today.
“We experienced a very challenging fire today that required a large amount of manpower working for an extended period of time. With the additional manpower and equipment on the scene, we had extra hands capable of completing essential tasks to get the job done as efficiently and safely as possible,” said Deputy Chief Ziegler. Seven fire apparatus responded to the scene with a total of 22 firefighters operating on the scene.
Agencies that assisted at this incident include the Columbus Police Department, Columbus Regional Health Ambulance Service, Columbus Animal Care Services, Duke Energy, CenterPoint Energy, Columbus City Utilities and the Bartholomew County Emergency Operations Dispatch Center.
