Fire strikes townhomes; one dog dies in blaze

Thursday, Jan. 27, 2000 | 11:46 a.m.

A two-alarm fire damaged three townhomes under renovation in The Lakes neighborhood on the west side Las Vegas on Wednesday.

Firefighters from the Las Vegas and Clark County Fire Departments were called to the South Shore Villas townhomes near Fort Apache Road and Lake South Drive about 7:30 p.m.

"The first unit that arrived found a light haze in the area, and the owner of the home told them her baby was upstairs," Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski said.

"It turns out she has a little dog that she called her baby."

The fire moved into the attic of the three connected townhomes, forcing firefighters to fight the fire defensively from the outside making sure it didn't spread to the surrounding buildings, Szymanski said.

About 60 firefighters brought the fire under control in about 20 minutes, but the damage may have been avoided had the homeowner followed a hunch Wednesday afternoon.

"The owner said she had noticed some smoke coming from a vent in her home Wednesday afternoon," Szymanski said. "She got her superintendent and her husband and they couldn't find anything. She was having work done on the home.

"Anytime a citizen has a doubt about something being on fire, they should call the fire department."

The fire started in the wall of the center townhouse and moved into the attic. The dog died in the blaze and the three families that live in the damaged townhomes stayed with friends Wednesday night, Szymanski said.