At 5 p.m. this afternoon, several calls came in to WCCCA 911 reporting an outbuilding on fire in a residential neighborhood on Milburn Street. Nearby firefighters also noticed a column of smoke coming from the general vicinity just as the fire was being dispatched. Due to multiple calls and visible smoke, the call was immediately upgraded to a first alarm to bring in adequate firefighting resources.

Upon arrival, the crews found the fire had quickly spread from the outbuilding to the house. The occupants were home when the fire broke out and self-evacuated. Firefighters began aggressively attacking the fire, which took over two hours to extinguish and required an additional upgrade to a second alarm. Crews were faced with multiple challenges when extinguishing the fire due to excessive contents in the home and extremely hot weather. They were able to contain the fire to the individual property and protected nearby homes.

Two adults and two dogs were displaced as a result of the fire, and the American Red Cross is assisting them with temporary housing and other essential needs. Two firefighters sustained minor injuries while fighting the fire and were transported to a local hospital for assessment.

Fire investigators are currently on scene working to narrow down the origin and possible cause.

TVF&R was assisted by a Hillsboro Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief. Portland Fire and Rescue was dispatched to the scene upon upgrade to the second alarm. Washington County Sheriff’s Office provided traffic and crowd control to ensure safety of the scene.