A Kotzebue man is without a home after a fire on Saturday night.
Kotzebue Fire chief Joshua Funk said the fire started at around 10 o’clock at House 907 on Shore Avenue.
“There was one occupant in the building, he was able to get out safely.” Funk said. “He had two pet dogs outside the building that firefighters were able to get out of the smoke and get to safety as well.”
The house's occupant, Stevie Stein, told Funk he believes the fire might have started when his Toyo stove malfunctioned.
Funk said nine fire department staff members and two volunteers responded to the fire. The crew used a fire ladder and engine, plus two ambulances to keep firefighters warm as they worked on the fire. Funk said fighting the fire was difficult — with temperatures outside well below zero, firefighters needed to take breaks due to icing. Funk said the fire burned hot enough to vaporize the smoke, which can ignite or flash burn, posing additional risks to the firefighters.
There was another threat, too. The fire was less than 100 feet from a fuel facility owned by Crowley Fuels. Funk said he was thankful that the wind blew in a direction away from the tank farm.
“I was thanking God in fighting that fire that the wind held,” Funk said. “If the wind would have shifted, we would have a whole lot harder fire to extinguish.”
Funk said city and volunteer firefighters worked on the fire until about 4 a.m. the next morning. He said ultimately the building was a “total loss.”
“It is fully, fully damaged — the roof caved in, there is no way to move back in or to salvage the house,” Funk said. “Basically all of his possessions were pretty much destroyed. I doubt he'll be able to salvage very much from the remains of the house.”
Funk said Stein is receiving help from his family and other organizations and looking for permanent housing.
