‘Flames were all over:’ Caldwell elected official loses home in fire
Rep. Kent Marmon, R-Caldwell, and his wife escaped a fire at their house on Monday night but lost their home.
Marmon told the Idaho Statesman in a message on Tuesday morning that they were inside the Caldwell home, located on Fillmore Street, when the blaze spread.
“We didn’t know what was going on until we heard glass breaking in the bathroom next to the room we were in watching TV,” Marmon said in a social media post. “When we went to look, flames were all over the south side of the house. A big picture window in the living room broke out, and flames were inside the house, along with lots of very black smoke.”
Fire crews observed a “significant fire” near the back of the home and quickly worked to control it, but the house ultimately “sustained extensive damage and is uninhabitable,” the Caldwell Fire Department said in a Tuesday news release.
Marmon said crews told him they believe the fire started “under a small fridge in the outdoor kitchen I built about 15 years ago.”
“The firefighters did everything they could,” Marmon said. “It was amazing watching them work. They brought us water and checked up on us as we sat across the street surrounded by neighbors who wanted to help in any way they could.”
Fire personnel told Marmon’s family that they escaped just in time.
“It was very fortunate that we got out when we did, because a couple minutes more and our exit path would have been impassable,” Marmon said. “I thank God for watching over us.”
The Middleton Star Fire District, Nampa Fire District, Canyon County Paramedics and the Caldwell Police Department assisted at the scene.
