Blaze destroys home; dogs rescued

A Pioneer Road mobile home with some additions was considered a total loss after a fire broke out Tuesday afternoon, causing severe smoke and heat damage.

Responders were notified of the fire north of Evergreen around 4:37 p.m., Evergreen Fire Chief Craig Williams said. After about an hour, the blaze remained active, but was contained. Water was transported from nearby Glacier Park International Airport using a water tender.

Crews moved out to surrounding fields — dry from recent hot temperatures — with brush trucks searching for stray embers or hot spots that could potentially start additional fires, Williams said.

No one was home at the time the fire started. Two dogs were rescued by a neighbor, 17-year-old Austin Nelson. Nelson said he spotted the smoke and knew it was serious.

Realizing the owner was not at home and that two dogs could be inside the mobile home, he became worried.

“I jumped out of my car. I was still sitting in my driveway, jumped over the fence, opened the fence, opened the back door. The dogs came sprinting out,” Nelson said.

He called 911 and safely secured the dogs in a kennel.

“The whole back of the house was on fire.”

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

In addition to Evergreen Fire and Rescue, responders included Kalispell, Columbia Falls, Whitefish fire departments, and Glacier Park International Airport.

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.