A home was destroyed by a generator-sparked fire amid strong winds in the Conifer area on the evening of December 17.

According to Elk Creek Fire Department, crews were dispatched to a structure fire located on the 21000 block of Pleasant Park Road at about 7:18 p.m. that night, and upon arrival, a residence was found to be fully engulfed in flames. Fire had also spread to nearby vegetation, burning trees and threatening additional spread into wildland area in the rural and forested area.

Thankfully, staffing and preparedness was operating at an elevated level at the time due to forecasted gusty weather and dangerous fire conditions. Wind speeds in the Conifer area were reported to be around 65 to 75 miles per hour on Wednesday night, per the National Weather Service, though some sources suggest gusts as high as 90 miles per hour were present.

A structure engine, water tenders, and wildland firefighting apparatus were deployed to the scene, with crews able to simultaneously address both the structure fire and the surrounding wildland fire.

While the home was deemed to be a total loss, the wildland fire was limited to about a quarter-acre as crews were able to prevent its further spread. Given how winds can stoke fire behavior and push a blaze through terrain, the effective firefighting response may have prevented disaster.

An update from the fire department on December 18 indicated that the malfunction of a gasoline-powered generator was behind the blaze.

No injuries were reported.

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