Structure Fire Near the UM Golf Course in Missoula

(UPDATE at 4:29 p.m.)

According to Assistant Fire Chief Philip Keating, the fire began a little after 10:30 a.m.

“It took quite a bit of time and effort, but we were able to contain it to one of the apartments of the six Plex,” Keating said. “Thankfully, we were able to stop it at that apartment. Unfortunately, all six units are probably uninhabitable. The apartment that caught on fire was occupied. They alerted the adjoining apartment and got that evacuated. Upon our arrival, we had everyone else evacuated in all the apartments. We were able to get all of the animals out of those apartments except for the fully involved apartment.”

Unfortunately, Keating said one dog was trapped upstairs and did not survive the fire. Keating said Missoula Rural Fire also responded.

“We had all five of our engines from the city tied up on this incident,” Keating said. “Our ladder truck was set up trying to gain access to the roof because the fire had progressed into the roof structure. We were tapped out and Rural was great about assisting us in covering in Missoula. Emergency services provided rehab for our firefighters. We did send one of our firefighters to the emergency room. He has since been released and is doing well.”

Keating also mentioned that the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

“The Missoula Fire Department Fire Investigation Team is working on cause analysis,” Keating said. “We've been working with the University of Montana to turn the incident back over to them and then they’ll manage the incident from here on out.”

Keating estimated that the damage will exceed $500,000.