Dog rescued from Evergreen trailer fire

An electrical fire Tuesday afternoon left an Evergreen trailer uninhabitable after flames torched the kitchen area and caused smoke damage throughout the home.

Firefighters with Evergreen Fire Department responded to 111 Poplar Drive., No. 3 at 3:30 p.m., to find smoke and flames coming from a kitchen window. Crews entered the 1969 single-wide trailer and found one dog still inside.

“He was obviously experiencing some distress from the smoke, but we gave him some oxygen and he seemed to be improving,” Evergreen Fire Chief Craig Williams said Wednesday.

The department has oxygen masks made specifically for dogs, he added.

The chihuahua was transported to Central Valley Animal Hospital in Kalispell by Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputy Robert Brauer and animal control officer Carisa Hoerner. The pup was reunited with its owners a little over an hour later upon their return home.

Williams said animal rescues are hardly unusual events in firefighting, but tend to be somber occasions more often than not.

“Anytime that we can try and rescue a pet, which is in most cases is certainly a member of the family, it’s always really rewarding to be able to do that and provide a little bit of comfort to somebody having a really bad day,” Williams said.

Fire damage at the Poplar Drive home was limited to the kitchen, although the unit sustained significant heat and smoke damage throughout the interior. An electrical outlet near the kitchen counter was believed to be the source of the fire. Williams didn’t consider the event a total loss, but noted that “it would take a lot of work for them to inhabit it again.”

Also on scene were units with the South Kalispell Fire Department, Whitefish Fire Department, Kalispell Fire Department and the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office.

However, responders with Whitefish and South Kalispell were diverted to a three-car collision on Reserve Drive that occurred concurrently with the structure fire.

“A lot of teamwork went on yesterday,” Williams said.

On Tuesday evening, the trailer’s tenants stopped by the Evergreen station with their dog to offer thanks to the firefighters, Williams said.

“Trailers generally go really fast,” he said, “so we were thankful that we had a quick response.”

Reporter Mackenzie Reiss may be reached at 758-4433 or mreiss@dailyinterlake.com.