House fire quickly contained thanks to smoke alarm, closed door

Residents escaped a house fire in the 20000 block of North Gibson Road today after being alerted by their smoke alarms.

Maricopa Fire Department responded to the call in Cobblestone Farms about noon after residents reported hearing the smoke alarms and seeing smoke in the laundry room area on the second floor of their home. Fire crews found thick smoke on the second floor of the home and quickly contained the fire to the laundry room.

“Everything fell into place,” Maricopa Fire spokesman Brad Pitassi said. “There was smoke alarms alerting the residents of an issue in the house, the quick activation of the 9-1-1 system and our crew’s ability to get there and contain that fire within minutes of arrival. All of the dominoes fell into place for a good outcome.”

Carl Landry was one of three people home at the time.

He said they heard the smoke alarm “then we saw the smoke coming under the door. She called the fire department and they told us to get out, so we all ran out.”

“I guess lint in the dryer got hot and caught on fire,” Landry said.

Fire Marshal Eddie Rodriguez was investigating the blaze and said lint in the vent pipe behind the dryer or elements in the appliance itself is the likely cause. He did not rule out an electrical issue.

Landry’s mother started the dryer around 11:30 a.m. before leaving for work.

Rodriguez said if people were not home “we would’ve had a down-to-the ground fire; we would’ve lost that home.”

Rodriguez also said the fire “would have spread pretty fast” if the laundry room door was not shut.

“The home right now is not livable,” Rodriguez said. “ED3 did come out and shut the power off. It’s going to be a while before they can get back in there.”

Landry’s cousin Heather Jackson, whose family also lives in the home, put the day’s events in perspective: “It could’ve been a lot worse.”

“The main thing I’m concerned about is just my kids, getting them settled in,” she said of her 10-, 11- and 15-year-olds.

Red Cross was on its way to assist the seven members of the household.

“We’re a tough group of people,” Jackson’s husband, Sharmon Jackson, said. “We can handle this.”

Rodriguez suggests residents “clean the lint trap and every once in a while clean that vent pipe, and replace your smoke detector batteries.”

MFD released a statement reminding residents of the importance of properly-functioning smoke alarms:

“Smoke alarms save lives. This incident illustrates the importance of having smoke alarms throughout your home and keeping them in working condition. This is a great item to check your smoke alarm batteries or replace the entire unit if it has expired.

“During the changing of the seasons the fire department runs on numerous smoke alarm calls. Most of these calls are for dead batteries or dirty detectors. Please take some time to make sure your batteries are fresh and