It was a devastating week for two Vernal families after suffering unrelated house fires a day apart on December 3rd and 4th. According to Uintah County Fire Marshal Jeremy Raymond, the first one took place December 3rd in the early morning at about 12:30am in the Painted Hills area. The home was fully engulfed but thankfully the family made it out safely. No injuries were reported and firemen were on the scene for 3 hours. The estimated damage to the house and contents is $230,000 dollars. The cause is under investigation. The second fire occurred December 4th at about 3:30am, shares Raymond. It was also a total loss but again, thankfully the family made it out safely. The cause remains under investigation and at the time of the interview, Raymond did not have an estimate on damage to the house and contents. He did, however, provide a reminder that heating equipment in homes should be serviced annually. Keep lamps away from combustibles and be sure to clean your chimneys. Fundraiser information is available on the Vernal Strong Facebook page. Among those rallying to help these families are local realtors who joined forces and presented the families with $3,000 dollars on Saturday in hopes of helping in this time of need, especially right before Christmas.
