Porch fire spreads into Wichita home
Everyone escaped a house fire in the 1600 block of N. Jackson safely this afternoon, but damage is extensive.
"Very significant damage to the house. Just looking at it, it's at least 50 percent total on it," said Wichita Fire Department Battalion Chief Joe Bickel. "If they rebuild it, it'll be hard to say."
People in the area reported a fire on the front porch of the home around 1:30 p.m., and knocked on the back door to alert the residents. When everyone went around to the front yard, the fire had spread into the second floor.
"With this wind blowing out here - about 20 miles per hour right now - and being on the front porch, it did fan the flames and made it advance faster than it normally would have," Bickel said.
The cause of the fire has not been determined.
Firefighters continued to find patches of smoke and fire after the flames were mostly under control. Bickel said it was an older house.
"It's built from the first floor all the way to the roof, and it has open spots," he said. "So what we're doing is opening up the walls on the inside to make sure all the fire is extinguished on the walls."
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