A home in the foothills near Conifer was destroyed this morning despite the efforts of firefighters from three departments battling the blaze, which threatened to spread to adjacent forests.
Dave MacBean, chief of the Inter-Canyon Fire Department, said firefighters were called to the home at 9579 S. Turkey Creek Road at 4:15 a.m. and found the two-story house in flames.
Firefighters called the Elk Creek and Indian Hills departments for assistance.
More than 30 firefighters fought the blaze and worked to stop it from spreading to nearby forests by spraying the trees with water, said MacBean.
“We are very lucky we had a lot of moisture this year,” said MacBean. “It could have been a very different story if we hadn’t.”
MacBean said a passer-by on Turkey Creek Road spotted the flames and turned into the driveway of the home to alert the two residents of the house.
One of the two dogs inside began barking when the car pulled into the driveway, which woke the two people inside. The two dogs and the residents got out safely, said MacBean.
He said that because there are no fire hydrants in the area, five tanker trucks brought water to a portable pond at the scene. At the home, pumpers used water from the pond to spray the fire.
MacBean said it took firefighters two hours to knock the fire down.
The fire chief said it appears the fire started near the home’s large deck.
He said there was nothing suspicious about the fire but that firefighters would remain at the scene today to establish exactly where it started and how. They also will be there to douse any hot spots.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
