Mother seriously burned while saving three children from Otis Orchards house fire

A mother suffered third-degree burns and collapsed after she saved her three children from their burning home in Otis Orchards late Friday.

The fire in a double-wide manufactured home in the 6000 block of North Starr Road was reported a few minutes before midnight Friday. It was upgraded to a two-alarm fire after fire crews arrived to see heavy smoke and flames along with four injured people, said Greg Rogers, Spokane Valley Fire Department fire marshal.

“The mother got the two youngest kids out the front door,” Rogers said. “She went back in to get the 7-year-old.”

After she rescued her oldest daughter, the woman collapsed in the front doorway. A passerby pulled her from the burning home before fire crews arrived, Rogers said. The woman suffered third-degree burns and was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with her 7-year-old daughter. The two younger children were taken to a local hospital.

There were no working smoke detectors in the home, Rogers said. He praised the mother for saving her children before the fire consumed the home.

“This totally would have been a different scenario without the mother’s efforts,” he said.

The home was a total loss, Rogers said. The cause remains under investigation.

The Spokane Valley Fire Department will provide smoke detectors to residents for free. People can stop by any local fire station or call the department during business hours at (509) 928-1700.