St. Charles House Fire Causes $150,000 in Damages

A house fire caused about $150,000 in damage to a home on Park Avenue Tuesday afternoon, said Capt. Dan Casey of the St. Charles Fire Department.

The blaze at 2904 Park Ave. destroyed the garage, carpentry tools, a bass boat and fishing equipment. It also damaged the kitchen, living room and a neighbor’s siding and windows.

A teenager and the family dog escaped the fire. The teen called 911 from a neighbor’s house.

“The teenager had just gotten done cutting the grass and put the lawn mower inside the garage,” Casey said.

He said firefighters believe that the muffler from the lawn mower may have been touching or too close to plastic gas cans and ignited them.

“Gasoline will give off fumes when it’s as cool as 50 degrees, so you need to keep lids on the gas cans. The hotter it gets, the more fumes they give off,” Casey said. “We recommend you keep flammables stored together in a metal cabinet.”

He also recommended allowing the lawn mower to cool off outside before storing it indoors. Hot items should be kept a minimum of 36 inches away from flammables, Casey said.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has more on the fire.