One structure lost, two damaged in Tuesday fire

SUN photo/Randi Pierce
Personnel from the Pagosa Fire Protection District work to spray down a house on Canyon Circle, in the Vista subdivision, Tuesday afternoon. The fire started in the structure pictured, then spread to two adjacent structures, which were damaged, but saved.

One structure was lost and two others were damaged in a Tuesday afternoon fire in the Vista subdivision.

The fire, which is still under investigation, was called in shortly after 2 p.m. Tuesday, June 24, with Pagosa Fire Protection District personnel arriving on scene in three minutes, said John Gilbert, PFPD wildland coordinator and incident commander.

The fire originated in a modular home on Canyon Circle, in the Vista subdivision, with the fire then spreading to two adjacent modular homes. Additionally, embers from the burning structures caused several small grass fires in the immediate area, Gilbert explained.

The bulk of the damage was limited to the structure where the fire originated, with that structure deemed a loss. The adjacent structures were damaged, but saved, Gilbert said.

Crews cleared the scene at about 7:45 p.m.

At least 32 PFPD personnel, using nine pieces of equipment, fought the blaze, with help from Archuleta County’s wildland fire crew, which tended to several small grass fires in the area.

In addition to firefighting crews, Gilbert said several personnel from the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office and Pagosa Springs Police Department worked to secure the perimeter of the incident, and workers from the Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District, Source Gas and La Plata Electric Association were on site to help.

U.S. Forest Service fire personnel and the Los Pinos Fire Protection District were ready to respond if needed.

No one was injured during the incident, Gilbert noted.

In light of the fire, Gilbert said the PFPD reminds residents to maintain defensible space around residences.

For more information on creating a defensible space, call the PFPD at 731-4191 or visit www.pagosafire.org, or contact Firewise of southwest Colorado by visiting www.southwestcoloradofires.org.

Donations to help the woman displaced by the fire, Kaitlyn Potter, as well as her 4-year-old son Wyatt, can be dropped off at The Hub Bike Shop or put in the Potter donation account at Wells Fargo.

randi@pagosasun.com