Homeowner Oliver Rand called 911 reporting a fire at his residence at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
The Dallas Bay Volunteer Fire Department responded to 1737 Hidden Harbor Road. When the first unit arrived, it reported heavy fire coming from the back of the house. Firefighters quickly conducted an interior attack while other firefighters fought the fire on the back side of the house.
Fire officials reported Mr. Rand and his wife were watching TV in the bedroom when they heard a loud explosion coming from the sunroom. Mr. Rand went to investigate to find his sunroom engulfed in flames. They immediately evacuated with the house with two of the three dogs. They were unable to find the third dog due to the significant amount of smoke and fire throughout the house. Unfortunately, firefighters found the dog expired in a back bedroom. The Rands also had two birds that expired in the fire as well.
The cause of the fire is undetermined but will be under investigation by the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office. Damages are listed at $75,000. Two Dallas Bay Firefighters were transported to Memorial North Park for heat exhaustion. The American Red Cross was called to respond to assist the family with their immediate needs.
The Dallas Bay VFD was assisted by the Sequoyah VFD and Red Bank Fire Department for additional manpower.