A Meridian family's Tuesday evening took a frightening turn when they came home to find their garage filled with smoke, prompting one of them to dash inside and pull their dog to safety before firefighters arrived to put out a couch fire burning in the living room.
Meridian Fire Department crews responded Tuesday evening to a reported residential structure fire in the 100 block of E. Havasupai, according to KBOI. The occupants had arrived home to find their garage filled with smoke and immediately called 911, the station reports.
Rather than wait for help, one occupant went back into the smoke-logged house and successfully rescued the household dog. That same person was later evaluated for smoke inhalation after entering the residence, and was treated and released at the scene, per the news release cited by the station.
Firefighters Catch the Blaze Before It Spreads
When crews arrived, they found a couch engulfed in flames inside the living room. Firefighters moved quickly to extinguish the fire before it could spread further into the rest of the home, the outlet's report notes.
No other injuries were reported, and no firefighters were hurt while battling the blaze. Fire damage was limited to the couch itself, though portions of the home still sustained heavy smoke damage, according to the same account. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Not the First Close Call for Meridian Homes
Tuesday's fire is the latest in a string of residential blazes to hit Meridian homes in recent memory. In May 2024, firefighters responded just after 6:30 a.m. to a house fire in the 5000 block of North Brody Avenue after spotting flames coming from the garage, according to the Idaho Statesman. Everyone in that home safely evacuated, and eight units managed to extinguish the fire within 30 minutes; its cause was also left under investigation.
A separate incident saw Meridian and Boise fire departments along with Ada County Paramedics dispatched to a working fire off Gideon Place, where crews found a large detached garage fully involved, according to a report from idahonews.com. Crews took a defensive stance to protect nearby structures as the fire took several hours to put out after the building collapsed, and the homeowner was injured while trying to fight the flames and was transported to a hospital by Ada County EMS. No firefighters were hurt in that fire, which also remained under investigation.
Back on E. Havasupai, Tuesday's fire ended without serious injury thanks to a fast 911 call and a quick response from crews. Investigators have not yet said what sparked the couch fire inside the Meridian home.
