At 2:43 a.m. on December 2, 2024, Roseburg Fire Department personnel responded to a reported small transient fire next to a commercial structure located at 1693 W. Harvard Avenue. The reporting party had noted the fire was close to a commercial structure located on the property.
Firefighters arrived on scene to find an active fire on the exterior portion of the commercial structure, which had extended into the interior portion of the structure. The commercial structure houses multiple businesses, although the fire occurred at the portion of the structure occupied by Harvard Shoe Repair. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and stopped the forward spread of the fire to the remaining portion of the commercial structure. Firefighters completed a search of the structure and determined no occupants were inside the structure at the time of the fire.
While firefighters were handling containment of the fire at 1693 W. Harvard Avenue, a secondary fire was reported to Douglas County Dispatch, as being in a nearby dumpster located at 1739 W. Harvard. Firefighters with Central Douglas Fire and Rescue located the fire and assisted with extinguishment of the secondary fire inside the dumpster.
The commercial structure at 1693 W. Harvard Avenue sustained structural, smoke, and water damage. Firefighters remained on scene to complete overhaul. A fire investigator was on scene and the cause of both fires remains under investigation. Ten firefighters assisted with firefighting operations. Other agencies assisting with the fire included Umpqua Valley Ambulance, Roseburg Police Department, Avista Utilities, and Pacific Power. Thank you again to Central Douglas Fire & Rescue for the assistance with extinguishing the dumpster fire that occurred simultaneously.
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