Columbia Fire: Blaze started in basement of north Columbia home

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia Fire Department says a large fire started Friday in the basement of a home in the 4300 block of Langham Drive.

Columbia Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said firefighters were called to the neighborhood just after 11 a.m. after a neighbor saw smoke coming from the back of the house. Schaeffer said CFD arrived within five minutes of the initial call, and the fire had already spread to the first floor of the home.

An ABC 17 News reporter saw firefighters cutting holes into the roof to create vents.

Schaeffer said the cold temperatures posed a special set of challenges when battling the blaze.

"This is very difficult to navigate fighting fire when it's 5 degrees outside," Schaeffer said. "The challenges that can happen when you're working in this type of environment. One is falls, so we're trying to keep the water and ice that's accumulated down to a minimum and then just taking care of each other because it is so cold and they're covered and wet."

Schaeffer said no one was inside the home and no one was hurt while fighting the fire, though CFD later wrote in a social media post that a dog, bird and fish died in the fire.

The fire was ruled accidental and started in a clothes dryer, the post says.

"Crews first initiated an offensive attack, fighting the flames from inside the home. Due to the level of toxic smoke and heat in the home, firefighters were evacuated from the structure at 11:43 a.m. to reassess the situation and ensure the safety of the structure before initiating a defensive attack. The fire was under control in approximately 35 minutes," the post says.