Fire totals home in Smithville

Havre Fire Department responded to two fire calls, one Wednesday afternoon that destroyed a residence in Smithville and another early this morning. 

Havre Fire Chief Mel Paulson said that the first was a structure fire which was reported at 4:32 p.m. on the 1600 Block of Smithville Road.

Firefighters arrived on the scene at 4:35 p.m. and had the fire controlled about 15 minutes later at 4:50 p.m., he said.

He added that the structure fire was in an occupied trailer and the building was a complete loss. Paulson said that no one was seriously injured during the fire although the resident of the home had some minor injuries and transported themselves to Northern Montana Hospital. 

Havre Fire Department responded to the fire with three fire engines, two ambulances and one command vehicle, he said. He added that the cause of the fire has not been determined at this time.

Firefighters also responded to another fire early this morning, Paulson said. The fire was reported at 3:40 a.m. on the 1000 Block of 16th Street West and was a small fire underneath a trailer. He added that the fire was quickly extinguished.

The fire was caused by a heater underneath the trailer home which was being used for heating up pipes for the trailer, he said.

Paulson said that, especially during the winter time, people need to keep in mind when using alternative heating sources to only use approved heating sources and use them correctly. Misused heating sources, such as space heaters or portable furnaces, can cause fires.

He added that he also wanted to inform people not to try to follow fire engines or ambulances when they responding to an emergency call. He said that people for the past couple of months have been following behind emergency vehicles to calls and are causing a hazard, both on the road and at the scene. 

"It is getting dangerous," Paulson said.

He added that people may want to see what firefighters or emergency personnel are responding to, but by doing this they are putting themselves and others at risk.

"If there are responders on the way, (people) have to remember to give us a chance to get to the scene and get to work," Paulson said.