Jefferson City residents are OK after house fire causes major damage
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
Billie Siebeneck and her husband had to evacuate their home Thursday night after their attic caught fire on Rivercrest Court in Jefferson City.
Siebeneck and her husband were watching TV when they heard a loud noise.
"All of a sudden it was just like a bomb went off," Siebeneck said.
Siebeneck said lightning hit her home. She didn't feel like anything was different until she ran outside after the bang and smelled something burning.
A neighbor called the Jefferson City Fire Department around 9:10 p.m.
Firefighters saw smoke coming from the roof and gable ends of the two-story home, according to a JCFD press release.
The fire department can't confirm what caused the fire, but JCFD Division Chief Jason Turner said the can't rule out a lightning strike.
 "The residents were there at home at the time. They said, 'hey, we think we had a lightning strike. We can't confirm, the electricity goes off, we started smelling something that potentially smelled like something burning.' Things like that is what clues to us," Turner said.
Heavy storms swept through the area Thursday, and the fire department is checking with the National Weather Service to make sure the Siebeneck's home was in the area.
The fire was contained to the attic, although firefighters drilled holes in almost every room on the top floor, Siebeneck said.
The storms that rolled through the area starting around dusk Thursday left hundreds without power. Wind damage was reported near Ashland, Bunceton, Franklin and Blackwater, according to the National Weather Service.
Seventeen firefighters were sent to the fire.
While on scene, firefighters used thermal imaging cameras to see heat that might be invisible to the naked eye.
"One of the items that we use is our thermal imaging cameras that helps us detect where those hotspots are in the attic areas, and not just in the attic areas, but anywhere there's heat," Turner said.
These cameras light up when it detects heat, indicating to fire fighters where a hot spot is.
