A neighbor walking his dog noticed a fire in a St. Charles townhouse, alerted and helped evacuate the occupant and called 9-1-1, saving property for certain and just maybe a life along the way.

The St. Charles Fire Department was dispatched at around 6:37 p.m. Tuesday (Dec. 19, 2017) to a reported townhome fire at 307 Fairmont Court. Firefighters were on the scene by 6:40 p.m. and found multi-family townhome building with fire visible on the exterior.

Firefighters confirmed that all occupants were out of the house and, upon investigation, found that the fire had started in a mulch bed on the exterior of the unit and was traveling up the exterior wall.

Firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the exterior fire with the positive result of only very minimal fire and smoke penetration being made into the basement of the structure. They were able to bring the fire under control in approximately 20 minutes, but the investigators remained on the scene more than an hour afterward.

One occupant was in the home at the time of the fire and was able to exit safely with his dog. There were no injuries to firefighters or the occupant.

St. Charles Fire Chief Joe Schelstreet credited the neighbor, who had been walking his dog when he noticed the fire and alerted the occupant.

The cause of the fire is attributed to discarded smoking materials. Fire loss is estimated at $8,000 to the structure and contents, and the home remains habitable.

SOURCE: St. Charles Fire Department news release