Structure Fire At 20758 Lyra Drive On 01/23/26 (Photo) - 01/23/26

At 5:06 am on Friday, January 23, 2026, a 911 caller reported his home and garage full of smoke and a fire near the electrical panel in the garage.  Bend Fire & Rescue responded to the address at 20758 Lyra Drive in the Starwood subdivision off Tumalo Road.  First arriving units found a fire in the corner of the garage with some extension into the attic space above the garage.  Damage to the structure is estimated at $35,000 and $5,000 damage to the contents.  The interior of the residence sustained minor smoke and water damage, but is otherwise intact.  The home is not occupiable at this time due to lack of power.  The water to the home was also shut off in order to prevent freezing and bursting of pipes.  The residents declined Red Cross assistance.  

Upon investigation, the cause of the fire was found to be an electrical fault in the wiring of the home adjacent to the grounding rod.  This condition, called a floating neutral, can cause large imbalances in voltage within the wiring, leading to breakers tripping and the potential for a fire.  This is a situation that requires the urgent attention of a licensed electrician to correct. 

Bend Fire & Rescue would like to remind the community that working smoke alarms save lives.  In this case, the smoke alarms in the home did not sound, despite there being smoke in the house.  A young child in the home woke up and awakened a parent, who smelled the smoke and acted.  The smoke alarms in the home were found to be older, in excess of 10 years old.  Smoke alarms have a life span of 10 years, the sensors degrade over time and become unreliable.  Even if an older alarm still chirps or beeps, there is no guarantee that it will activate in the event of a fire.  Smoke alarms (and carbon monoxide alarms) over 10 years of age need to be replaced.  For more information on home fire safety and smoke alarms, visit https://www.bendoregon.gov/government/departments/fire-rescue/community-programs/smoke-and-carbon-monoxide-alarms

House Fire On NE Vail Ln In Bend 12-30-25 (Photo) - 12/30/25

Bend Fire & Rescue responded to a reported kitchen fire in one side of a duplex on NE Vail Ln on Tuesday morning. The occupant was asleep and woke to the sound of the smoke alarms sounding. The occupant found the house full of smoke and evacuated, calling 911 in the process. Fire crews arrived shortly after and stopped the fire from spreading. With the quick notification of 911 and quick response, the damage was limited to minor fire damage in the kitchen and smoke throughout the house. Any delay in the activation of 911 could’ve resulted in a complete loss of the home and its contents. Red Cross was called in to assist the family as they will be out of the house until repairs can be completed. The family pets also evacuated safely.

The fire was traced back to the stove top in the kitchen. It’s unclear if the stove was left on or the knob was accidentally bumped on, but food on stove top caught fire and spread to the adjacent cupboards. Damage is estimated at $75,000 to the house and contents. The occupants are renters and have renters’ insurance. No damage was reported to the other side of the duplex.

The working smoke alarms were key in the survival of the occupant. With the occupant asleep upstairs, without the smoke alarms alerting them to the fire below, they may not have known of the fire until it’s too late. With modern construction and furnishings in a house, seconds count. Homes built and furnished 50+ years ago could burn for 17 or more minutes before a room was not survivable. With today’s modern furnishings all having plastics in them, what used to be 17 minutes is now 3 minutes. A few minutes longer and the thick smoke produced from the cabinets being on fire could’ve been deadly. This is a good reminder to test your smoke alarms regularly and ensure they are in working condition. If they’re not, please replace them as soon as possible.

Tips for home smoke alarms:

• Smoke and CO alarms only last for 10 years. After that they need to be replaced.
• If they have alkaline batteries in them, change those batteries annually.
• Many new hardwired alarms come with Lithium batteries in them, so you don’t have to change batteries annually anymore.
• New smoke alarms can be easy to install with many brands coming with adapters that allow the work to be done without changing any wiring.

If you need any assistance with your alarms in the Bend area, please feel free to call us at 541-322-6386 to schedule a visit. If outside the Bend area, check with your local fire department or Red Cross branch for assistance.