Double duty: Pet-sparked house fire and Key Peninsula car accident stretch firefighters
A single car rollover and an unrelated residential fire on the Key Peninsula pulled the Key Peninsula Fire Department in two directions Friday evening.
The accident happened at 7:01 p.m. off Cornwall Road Northwest, the fire department posted on Facebook. The rescue required an extrication of the driver, who was in critical condition.
Within the same hour, a residential fire broke out on the opposite end of the Key Peninsula next to Gateway Park at 7:23 p.m. while all Key Peninsula personnel on shift were responding to the car accident. Gig Harbor Fire & Medic One managed the incident until Key Peninsula Fire units could arrive, according to the post.
The rural Key Peninsula Fire district must respond to calls across the peninsula, which spans about 65 square miles and is about 16 miles long, according to their website. Gateway Park at 10405 WA-302 on the Key Peninsula is over 11 miles away from Cornwall Road Northwest, according to Google Maps.
“All residents of the home were safely evacuated and it is believed that the fire was due to food on the stove accidentally being turned on by the family pet,” the post said.
Key Peninsula Fire Department spokesperson Anne Nesbit told The News Tribune via a text message Saturday morning that the pet was a dog. She also confirmed that there were no other passengers besides the driver in the car rollover Friday evening. Asked if the driver’s injuries were life-threatening, she wrote that the driver was transported with critical injuries.
According to a separate Facebook post on the Key Peninsula Firefighters page, the house fire broke out across the street from one of the fire stations.
“Fire doubles in size every 30 seconds,” the post said. “At a time when minutes matter, we are thankful that our neighbors at Gig Harbor Fire & Medic One responded quickly and managed the scene until we could get there.”
This story was originally published November 30, 2024 at 10:06 AM.
