By Tanya Steele
Family occupants of a brick dwelling in Yarra Glen have dodged a whole house fire event after quick action from the occupants and local fire brigades.
Multiple CFA units attended a structure fire in Yarra Glen on the evening of 19 September and quickly put out the fire inside the roof of a brick veneer dwelling – no one was injured in the event.
Brigades from Yarra Glen, Coldstream, Dixons Creek and Healesville arrived at the property along Melba Highway in Yarra Glen just after 10 pm.
“On arrival, they found the house with flames in the roof space,” Yarra Glen Captain Bill Boyd said.
“There was prompt action by the owner and his son in the initial stages which helped make the job easier for the brigades,” he said.
Mr Boyd said that the fire was contained to the roof space over about three bedrooms.
“It was great work from everyone,” he said.
The occupants of the home, a man and his son, noticed initially that the power went out.
“He went to investigate and noticed the house was warm, he went outside and saw the flames,” Mr Boyd said.
“They had a garden hose they put on it until we got there”.
Mr Boyd said the units proceeded carefully, being mindful of the solar panels on the property.
The event was a first for some of the crew at Yarra Glen CFA and Mr Boyd said the new recruits gained valuable experience from the call out.
“It was good experience for them,” he said.
Two female recruits attended the scene and Mr Boyd said Yarra Glen will have eight female operational firefighters members by the end of the year.
“It’s a great thing and we are very lucky at Yarra Glen to have them and it was good that they got out last night,” he said.
The fire consumed the roof of “about half the house” and Mr Boyd said there were no injuries and it was “great work” from everyone involved.
Fire investigation is following up on the matter to determine the cause of the fire.
