Firefighter Marc Fujiwara-Herbert rescues a tortoise from a house fire Friday afternoon in Lake Stevens. (David Petersen / Lake Stevens Fire Department)
LAKE STEVENS — A Lake Stevens house fire Friday displaced six people, shut down a busy road and imperiled a tortoise.
A homeowner called firefighters around 2 p.m. for flames that ended up badly damaging the front side of the two-story house in the 7100 block of 20th St. SE, said David Petersen, assistant fire marshal in Lake Stevens.
All of the residents escaped, or else weren’t home at the time. One pet tortoise was scooped up and rescued by firefighters.
No humans or reptiles were hurt.
A secondary fire crept into the walls toward the attic. Crews had to cut through the roof to extinguish hot spots.
All four walls were still standing, but the home isn’t habitable for the time being, Petersen said. A detached mother-in-law unit and garage wasn’t damaged.
The cause of the fire was being investigated. A damage estimate wasn’t available.
Officers shut down the street between U.S. 2 and 75th Avenue SE, according to police.
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