December, 2005
Disaster!
The House Burned Down — Dec 06, 2005
(click on picture to view larger version)
We have found that people are so shocked we have to say it
twice: yes, the house burned down. More on the details
below. First, no-one was hurt, and all our irreplaceable
belongings are safe in the Carriage House. Furthermore, the
people of Bridger Canyon and Bozeman have been very
supportive — even to the extent of making their homes
available over the holidays so that no-one who is planning
to visit should change their plans.
As with most unfortunate events, many factors combined to
make the situation worse. The fire started outside the
house, probably around 6am. Gary woke up minutes before 6:15
am to check if the road would need plowing and spotted what
appeared to be a small fire at the west end of the house. We
called 911 and Gary and Arthur raced up to the house to find
a small fire involving the underside of the
balcony at the west end.
Apparently, one of the small propane heaters set up to keep
the stucco applied the afternoon before ignited the plastic
sheeting the stucco contractor used to enclose the area
beneath the balcony. Flames were too high for us to reach,
and we were concerned that the propane tanks might explode.
As we later learned, there was also a propane heater on the
balcony, which explains why the fire suddenly increased in
intensity, roaring up under the eaves of the roof above the
balcony. We assume that the safety relief valve on the upper
tank had popped and was venting propane like a large torch.
The fire soon was inside the upper and lower west bedrooms
and spread quickly to the
oak flooring
that had received a first coat of finish late the previous
afternoon. It raced the length of the house.
It is ironic that all the care we had taken regarding fire
was for naught. The plumbers had turned off the water the
afternoon before (standard procedure, since they are
concerned about leaks with new installations).
Unfortunately, this meant that the fire suppression system
was also off; the question as to whether this would have
made a difference is still open. We also had a metal roof to
protect from external fire, but with the fire under the roof
it only served to prevent water the fire trucks were
spraying from reaching the fire. The largely fire proof
exterior of the house was no match for the blow torch of
fire from the propane tank.
It was evident by 7am that best efforts by the many fire
departments that responded were futile. It had been
snowing for 10 days straight, so the driveway was not in
the best condition. The temperature was below -10°F,
which caused many equipment problems. One pumper had a
gas line burst and the truck caught fire, so the firemen
had to divert efforts from the house to the truck.
Another truck must have had water in the hydraulic system
and its brakes froze, causing it to get stuck in the
drive (fortunately, there was room to get around it).
None of these problems made a difference in the outcome,
however; the situation was beyond what could have been
dealt with in ideal weather conditions.
Of course, we are still somewhat in shock about all this and
need some time to collect our wits. Once we have done that,
we can rationally evaluate what can be salvaged. We have
learned that the heat of the fire made the foundation
unusable for rebuilding, but hopefully most or all of the
garage may be saved.
Some (relatively) good news is that, between our insurance,
the insurance of the contractor and the insurance of the
subcontractor, we should have more than enough coverage to
rebuild. Of course, collecting from all those sources may
present some problems.
