The scent of a wood-burning fireplace isn’t unusual on a chilly day in January, but William Messenger, Southwest Gas’ district technician for Sierra Vista, Arizona, registered that the smell seemed just a bit different.
Then, as he was completing the tie-over to establish new gas service on his customer’s home, he noticed heavy smoke coming from about three houses over on the next street. “I thought someone might be burning something in their backyard, but it was a windy day, so I thought it was odd,” he said.
He decided to make sure nothing was wrong, and as he walked closer, he realized there was a fire—and it didn’t look like anyone knew it was there.
That’s when his training at Southwest Gas kicked in. The walk became a run, with Messenger calling 911 on the way. He checked out the backyard, noticed the fire was already consuming the back patio, then ran to the front door. When no one answered, he opened the unlocked door, calling out in a loud voice that he was from Southwest Gas and that the house was on fire.
One of the home’s occupants, an 81-year-old woman, didn’t understand what he was saying, and her son came out of the bathroom, mid-shower, to see what was going on. By that time, a neighbor had also arrived. Messenger had the neighbor evacuate the family while he raced back to the yard.
“You can’t control a house fire with a garden hose,” said Messenger, but he was able to keep the fire contained to the patio so that it couldn’t reach the roof and the home’s crawl space. When the fire department arrived soon after, Messenger turned his attention to shutting off the gas to further ensure the area’s safety. While the patio was a loss, “it could have been very ugly,” said Messenger, who has been on several house fire calls as part of his job.
The homeowners were very grateful for Messenger’s quick action. They “couldn’t say it enough,” he added. “They kept saying, ‘Thank you so much for coming over here.’” But for Messenger, “it was just another day in life at Southwest Gas for me. … We have a lot of pride in the fact that even though it’s not really your job, if you’re driving by and see something, you take the proper steps.”
