Fire Destroys West Lincoln Home, Kills One Dog

LINCOLN–(KFOR/KOLN Jan. 5)–LFR spent most of Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning dealing with a house fire in west Lincoln.

According to KFOR’s media partner, 10/11 Now, the first call came in around 6:15pm Tuesday about a house on fire near NW 22nd and West “Q” Street. First arriving crews found heavy fire on the backside of the house and that everyone inside got out safely. There was an issue in the basement, where firefighters were only able to battle the fire for a short time before moving outside and fight it defensively.

According to 10/11 Now, homeowner Christopher Schafer said “My son was in the back room,” Schafer said. “He had a cushion on the bed with him. He always sits on the bed with the dog, and the dog went to the front room, so he went into the front room and when he got up, the cushion fell over and landed on the space heater.”

Schafer says the cushion caught fire, spread to a mattress, and by the time he smelled the smoke and realized what was going on, it was too late. Schafer says he was able to safely get himself, his son, and a friend all out of the home. However, he says one of his dogs died in the incident. Another dog was found in the basement and rescued by firefighters.

Red Cross and family members were helping with relocation.

LFR says they are still investigating the official cause of the fire, but the home is a total loss. The value of the house was around $100,000. No one was hurt.