No one was injured when a fire broke out in a home on the northeast side of Jacksonville Tuesday morning.
The Jacksonville Fire Department was called to the 1000 block of North Clay Avenue at approximately 7:30 am for a report of a structure fire.
Jacksonville Fire Department Captain Mike Martin says when crews arrived at the single-story structure located at the corner of North Clay and Hockenhull Street, the fire was close to becoming a major problem.
“The [electric] meter was burning at the weather head area. We pulled inch and three-quarter lines and extinguished the exterior fire and notified Ameren that we would need them and they did respond in a timely fashion.
The fire had extended into the interior wall so we moved to an interior attack and pulled the ceiling and the wall from the area to extinguish that. Ameren then arrived to disconnect the power and we finished up our overhaul.”
The house was occupied at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported. Martin says it was fortunate the call came in when it did, as if it had been much longer, the fire could possibly have spread to the entire roof structure.
Damage to the home is estimated at $5,000 with $250 of damage to the contents. Martin says power remains disconnected to the house at this time and that it is currently uninhabitable, but is savable.
Martin says the occupants have been referred to the Red Cross if temporary housing is needed. The fire is believed to have been electrical in nature and not suspicious, however, an official cause remains under investigation by the Jacksonville Fire Department.