A fire early Sunday morning caused about $75,000 damage to a McMinnville home at 936 NW Baker Creek Road.

Paul Daquilante
NewsRegister.com

A fire early Sunday morning caused about $75,000 in damage to a McMinnville home, two family vehicles and an RV containing a pair of ATVs. A neighbor alerted the two occupants, and they escaped unharmed.

Firefighters were dispatched to 936 N.W. Baker Creek Road about 4 a.m., according to McMinnville Fire Marshal Eric McMullen. The Yamhill Communications Agency received multiple calls from residents of the area, triggered by explosive sounds apparently made by tires exploding.

The one-story home was occupied by the David Nelson family. The fire started in the RV, parked next to an attached garage.

"The RV was totally winterized, and there was a space heater inside to keep the moisture down," McMullen said. "The fire went up the east side of the garage, got into the soffit vents and spread into the attic."

The house and garage sustained smoke and heat damage throughout, and the garage sustained water damage when a pipe burst. McMullen said the fire was so intense it scorched trees and a fence nearby.

A full-size Ford pickup and a Suzuki Samurai sustained damage, along with the RV and ATVs, McMullen said, but another family vehicle appeared to be unscathed. He said the residents were insured, and believed they would be able to move back in once the home was aired out sufficiently.

Rhonda Pope, who lives next door, spotted the fire through her blinds. A guest ran over to alert neighbors as she called 911.

"It was just the RV on fire at first," Pope said, "but it quickly moved to the house. It was flaming and blowing in our direction, and it was a mad scramble to get out."

She said she was lucky her house wasn't damaged, as the RV was parked between the two residences, separated only by a small fence.

About 20 firefighters responded with five pieces of equipment.