CALDWELL, Idaho — A family in Caldwell is displaced after a common fire accident happened in their home. An extension cord and space heater sparked a fire destroying everything inside. The homeowner tells me he is just glad everyone was safe.
- A family of 3 is displaced after their home burned in flames due to an extension cord and space heater.
- Working smoke detectors were not working which could have alerted the sleeping resident inside the home.
- A fundraiser has been created to help the family start all over again.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
A Caldwell family of 3 finds themselves without a home after a fire broke out Monday.
The fire department says it was the result of a space heater plugged into an extension cord.
Homeowner Gilberto Munoz tells me he was out running errands when the house went up in flames.
Through tears, munoz told me as soon as he got home and opened the door all he saw were flames.
"I'm grateful that we are standing here talking to you, my friends are here, and material things come and go," said Caldwell Home Owner Gilberto Munoz.
One of his roommates was home at the time and had to jump out a window before firefighters arrived.
'If unfortunately this window was covered by a piece of equipment and bookshelf or anything inside the room it would have been a very different outcome,' said Caldwell Deputy Chief Fire Marshal Alan Perry.
Caldwell Deputy Chief Fire Marshal Alan Perry met me at the home and said the common mistake of plugging a heater into an extension cord instead of a wall outlet is what caused the fire.
"The space heater itself was located in the front bedroom where the little window is, but the actual fire started from the connection point of the extension cord and that space heater which was across the hallway in the HVAC system wall," said Perry.
To make matters worse the home's smoke detectors weren't working.
"This went to alarm, which means we brought in other resources Nampa and Mid-Star sent engine companies to help bolster our activity here and provide better tactics and support," said Perry.
He urges all homeowners to regularly test smoke detectors and be sure to install carbon monoxide detectors as well.
As for Munoz he and his roommates are trying to salvage what they can grateful they at least have each other.
"I'm glad that we are here, and that we are together to start all over again," said Munoz.