East Pierce Fire and Rescue firefighters battled a house fire Saturday for more than an hour and a half before bringing the blaze under control. Firefighters arrived at the home on the 3000 block of 108th Avenue East in Edgewood just before 4 p.m. to find flames shooting from the house. The residents of the two-story, split-level house were outside waiting for the firefighters.

Although the fire was officially declared out at 5:30 p.m., East Pierce Fire Chief Bud Backer said that firefighters were still putting out hot spots at 6:30 p.m. “It was a difficult fire,” Backer said. “There was fire in the basement when the firefighters arrived. It quickly spread to the first and second floors. Excessive heat and zero visibility made it hard to get a handle on it.” The firefighters also reported hearing multiple explosions coming from inside the structure.

It took six fire engines, one ladder truck and a medic unit to combat the stubborn blaze, including mutual aid units from South King Fire and Rescue and Central Pierce Fire and Rescue, to douse the blaze.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. The American Red Cross was called to provide shelter for the occupants. Portions of 108th Avenue East and 32nd Street East were closed for several hours during fire operations. No injuries were reported.

While fighting the fire, other East Pierce firefighters responded to a cardiac arrest call in the same area. Due to the lack of local resources, and East Pierce crew was joined by firefighters from Central Pierce.

“We were extremely busy with a difficult fire operations before the cardiac arrest call,” Backer said. In addition, several other mutual aid resources were needed to answer other calls in the fire district during the fire. “It was pretty busy,” he said.