Cheney woman dies in trailer fire

CHENEY — A woman died and a man escaped injury in a trailer fire Monday night on Vine Street.

The name of the victim has yet to be released pending notification of next of kin.

Fire District Nos. 3 and 10, police and Spokane County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the 10:45 p.m. fire, Fire Chief Tom Jenkins said.

Jenkins and Police Chief Rick Beghtol said emergency crews arrived on the scene within 2-3 minutes of receiving the call. Firefighters immediately focused on rescuing the trailer’s residents.

A man struggling to breathe escaped to his vehicle and was subsequently taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation, records show.

Firefighters later discovered a woman’s body inside the trailer.

“When our team arrived, the trailer was already fully engulfed in flames,” Jenkins said. “They had to act quickly to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby trailers and storage units.”

Jenkins described the scene firefighters faced, noting a “wall of flames and smoke” greeted them.

A firefighter confirmed with the injured man that only he and the woman had been inside the trailer.

The fire also threatened a large pine tree adjacent to the trailer, but firefighters contained the flames, Jenkis said. Rain earlier in the day helped keep the tree from igniting.

The cause of the blaze has yet to be determined at press time.

 

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