VIDEO: Eastside Fire & Rescue Helps Battle Stubborn Attic Fire in Newcastle

Crews from Eastside Fire and Rescue and the fought a stubborn attic fire in Newcastle for an hour Friday morning before bringing it under control, according to the Bellevue Fire Department.

A landscaper working in the 14300 block of 77th Place Southeast in Newcastle noticed fire outside a neighbor's two-story home and called 9-1-1 around 10 a.m., according to the Bellevue Fire Department.

Bellevue firefighters arrived seven minutes later to find heavy smoke and flames coming from the roof of the home, but no smoke or fire inside the living space, according to the Bellevue Fire Department.

The fire had spread from the outside of the home to the attic, and the cause of the fire is under investigation, said Bellevue Fire Department spokesman Lt. Troy Donlin. 

The living areas of the home are equipped with automatic fire sprinklers, but the blaze did not go through those areas, he said. Instead, the blaze spread through the parts of the home where automatic sprinklers were not installed or required, Donlin said.

The fire sprinklers in the home were installed properly and appears to have had no bearing on the spread of the fire, he said.

Cedar shake roofing material and the roof’s configuration made putting out the fire difficult, according to the fire department. Crews got the fire completely under control in 53 minutes, the fire department reported.

No one was at home at the time of the fire. No injuries were reported. Damage to the four-bedroom home is estimated at $300,000. The family of four who live in the home are being assisted by the Red Cross as they wait to survey damage to their belongings.

See http://youtu.be/-NXjnyx03HE for a video (embedded above) taken by a Bellevue firefighter.