photo by CFD
A Chattanooga family was receiving assistance from the American Red Cross after their home and belongings were heavily damaged by fire on Sunday afternoon.
At 1:20 p.m., Green Shift companies responded to a reported house fire in the 1000 block of Givens Road off East Brainerd Road.
When the crew from Station 21 (on East Brainerd Road) pulled out of the fire hall to head to the scene, they spotted heavy smoke. When units arrived, flames were through the roof.
Initially, it was not clear if anyone was still inside the home so a second alarm was called for additional personnel to respond and assist with fighting the blaze. Fire officials soon learned that all residents were safe and accounted for so a defensive fire attack was launched for safety reasons.
Fifty percent of the roof had collapsed, creating dangerous conditions for firefighters inside the structure.
The second alarm was cancelled and crews on the scene continued working to get the fire under control. Aerial operations got underway as other personnel used handlines to fight the fire on the ground.
Companies remained on scene for several hours tackling the flames and then hitting hot spots to make sure the fire was fully extinguished. The cause is under investigation. There were no injuries.
The Red Cross is helping two adults and two children.
Quint 21, Quint 8, Ladder 7, Squad 7, Ladder 13, Squad 13, Battalion 1, Battalion 2, Battalion 3, Engine 15, Engine 9, Ladder 1, Squad 1, Quint 6 responded, along with CFD Supply, CFD Investigations, CPD, EPB, HCEMS, and Chattanooga-Hamilton County Rescue’s Rehab Unit.
"Thanks to our mutual aid companies for filling in at several of our fire halls while the CFD worked this incident," CFD officials said.
photo by CFD