Firefighters extinguish house fire in 20 minutes
By John Richmeier
Leavenworth Times
Wed Dec 16, 2009



By John Richmeier
A burst of foam flows through a hole in the back of a house as firefighters extinguish flames Tuesday at 627 Kiowa St.

An electrical problem was blamed for a fire Tuesday morning at a north Leavenworth home, according to a Fire Department official.

No injuries were reported. The fire was reported at about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at 627 Kiowa St.
Assistant Fire Chief Mark Nietzke said the fire started in the attic.

"It started in there and we kept it there," he said.

Nietzke said the owner of the rental property had been at the one-story house earlier in the day. When he returned, he saw smoke coming from the roof.

Nietzke said the fire burned a hole through the back wall of the house. He said firefighters cut a hole into the kitchen ceiling to battle the fire.

He said the fire was extinguished in about 20 minutes.

He did not have a dollar estimate for the damage.

The fire call came on a morning when temperatures were well below the freezing level.

Nietzke said battling the fire caused water to run down nearby streets. He said firefighters contacted city public works personnel so they could place salt and sand on a couple of streets where ice may have formed.