STORY BY KAREN BOSSICK

PHOTOS COURTESY OF LENNY JOSEPH

Firefighters found themselves trying to save a house with limited access to water as they battled a structure fire in Bellevue’s Muldoon Canyon late Thursday afternoon.

Firefighters from the BC South Fire Protection District were called to a report of a residential structure fire off Bayhorse Road at 3 p.m. They found an outbuilding near the main house fully engulfed in flames.

A firefighter works in heavy smoke.

Firefighters broke up into two teams with one team attacking the fire and another searching the main house.

The residents of the house were able to get out safely, and numerous animals on scene were also safely rescued.

Crews from Hailey Fire Department, Bellevue Fire Department, Ketchum Fire District, Sun Valley Fire Department and Carey Fire Department quickly joined BC South, fire trucks lining the road as smoke billowed into the cloudy sky.

They helped to attack the outbuilding fire while working to contain the fire, which by this time had spread to the garage of the main house. They had to shuttle thousands of gallons of water from a hydrant three-quarters of a mile from the scene due to limited hydrant access in the community

Fire crews were able to bring the garage fire under control by 4:48 p.m. and limit further damage to the main part of the house. But the outbuilding and a vehicle next to it were a total loss.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

This was the second fire Blaine County fire departments have responded to in less than a week.

Carey Rural Fire Protection District responded to a fire near Fish Creek Reservoir on Sunday when fire got away from a landowner burning tree stumps. The fie covered nearly 10 acres.