Just before 3 p.m. Friday, callers to 911 reported black smoke pouring out of a duplex in the 19000 block of SW 68th Avenue in Tualatin. Firefighters from TVF&R and Lake Oswego Fire Department arrived to find one of the units engulfed in flames and threatening the neighboring residence and nearby trees.
Firefighters quickly conducted a search to verify that people weren’t trapped inside while they began to extinguish the fire, which they knocked down within 12 minutes. Firefighters worked for another hour to prevent the fire from rekindling while removing smoke and salvaging belongings.
A TVF&R fire investigator will be working to determine where and how the fire started by examining material evidence and conducting witness interviews. The residents of the fire unit were not home when the fire started, and residents from both units of the duplex will be displaced due to fire, smoke, or water damage. The duplex did not contain a residential fire sprinkler system. There were no injuries as a result of the fire.
In addition to the support from Lake Oswego Fire Department and Washington County Consolidated Communications Agency (911 dispatchers), TVF&R was assisted by Tualatin Police Department, American Medical Response, Portland General Electric, and NW Natural Gas.
The American Red Cross will be assisting families displaced by the fire.
