Skye Duncan | Lariat Photo Editor
By Rachel Leland
Staff Writer
An unknown factor triggered a fire that destroyed a Waco man’s garage.
Waco Police responded to a call regarding a fire at 6:45 p.m. Tuesday night at the 2500 block of Robinson Dr.
The fire, which started in resident Fredrick Franklin’s garage, destroyed the two-car garage and spread to the corner of his house.
The house was saved when the firefighters arrived in time to put out the fire.
Franklin, who has a daughter that works at Memorial Dining Hall, said he was at work when he got a call that there was a fire at his residence.
“I was worried about the house,” Franklin said. “They told me the garage was on fire.”
Franklin said he wanted to get back to his job, but was relieved to find his home intact.
“As soon as I pulled up I found everything was alright,” Franklin said.
Assistant Fire Chief Chris Pechacek said although the cause of the fire is unknown, The Waco Fire Department is investigating.
“I think it was used as a storage area more than anything,” Pechacek said. “One of the neighbors said they heard a bang or a boom and they looked out across the field and they saw that the garage was on fire, and they called us.”
Waco Fire Department Captain Chris Ballew reported that the fire that destroyed the garage was large.
“The first unit got here and reported heavy smoke and flames to a detached garage,” Ballew said. “They pulled a line started attacking the fire to keep it from extending to the house.”
Franklin’s home sustained only small fire damage and is still inhabitable. If the residents had been displaced the Waco Fire department would have called the Red Cross, said Pechacek.
Because the fire was confined to the garage, it took firefighters only 5-6 minutes to put out the fire.
Ballew said there were no injuries, but that the firefighters rescued the Franklin’s dog from the back of the house.
No one was at the home during the fire, the family did not know if their dog was safe.
The damage sustained was not enough to displace the Franklins.
