Firefighting personnel from three area fire departments responded to a house fire on Old Yukon Road in Raymondville in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Raymondville Fire Department Chief Mike Jackson said two trucks and seven personnel from his department responded, arriving on scene at about 1 a.m.
Jackson said the fire began in a closet area in the wood-frame structure and quickly climbed into the attic.
City of Houston Fire Department Chief Robbie Smith reported that the department’s ladder truck and six men provided mutual aid, arriving at the scene at about 1:30 a.m. and leaving at about 3 a.m.
Also responding was the Licking Fire Department, with one truck and two men.
Jackson said firefighters doused the fire before the house was lost, but the entire attic space sustained heavy fire damage and there was smoke and water damage throughout the living area.
“The homeowner should be able to salvage a lot of the contents of the house,” Jackson said, “even some of the electronics.”
Jackson said the outcome of the fire might have been different, but the homeowner closed all the door and windows upon exiting.
“That made it so the fire couldn’t breathe as well,” Jackson said. “It gave us time to get situated and have a better chance to attack the fire. People need to understand that it’s always a good idea to shut doors and windows when you get out of a burning building.”
Officials determined the blaze began with electrical wiring. Nobody was injured.
Jackson said Raymondville FD personnel were on scene until about 5:30 a.m.
He said the response was one of five in a 28-hour period for his department. Other calls included two medical events, a vehicle crash and a brush fire on Friendship Road.
“If you had told me we’d have a fairly big brush fire with all the moisture we’ve had lately, I probably wouldn’t have believed it,” Jackson said. “But it got going and really took off.”