BAR NUNN — Natrona County firefighters were called to a fire in the 1900 bock of Mandan Trail on Thursday night that left a Bar Nunn family of three homeless and claimed the lives of two pets.
Mills Fire Department Chief Wil Gay said both Natrona County Fire District 1 and his department were dispatched at 11:01 p.m., and on arriving at the fire 15 or so minutes later found smoke and flames coming from the kitchen window on the left side of the upper level of the bilevel home.
“When the crews went in and made entry through a garage door and went upstairs basically to the kitchen, the kitchen was on fire,” he said. “There was a neighbor on his side watering down his house so it didn’t catch fire.”
Gay said there was no one at the home at the time except for the family’s four dogs.
He said two of the dogs rescued from the home ended up dying, likely from smoke inhalation.
Firefighters carry pet masks that are put over an animal's snout to force oxygen into its lungs, Gay said.
One of the dogs initially looked as if it was responding to the oxygen by lifting its head, but later died after being transported to a veterinary facility.
“The fire was contained to the kitchen, but the entire first floor suffered damage from the smoke,” Gay said.
A couple who own the home both work nights, and a son who lives in the home had left for an errand about an hour earlier, Gay said.
When a neighbor saw the flames, he ran to the house and got on the Ring camera that notified the owners about the blaze.
Firefighters from Natrona County Fire District 1 and Mills Fire Department responded to a blaze Thursday night at a home in Bar Nunn. 
Firefighters check the Bar Nunn home on Friday morning for any hot spots. 
Damage to the home in the 1900 block of Mandan Trail in Bar Nunn was contained mainly to its interior on the upper level. 
A Natrona County Fire District 1 truck sits outside the Mandan Trail residence on Friday morning. 
Firefighters from Natrona County Fire District 1 and Mills Fire Department responded to a blaze Thursday night at a home in Bar Nunn.
Extensive Upper Level Damage
Gay said in addition to rebuilding the kitchen, it’s likely the home’s drywall and interior on the upper level will have to be replaced due to the extensive smoke damage on that floor.
Two or three trusses above the kitchen area ceiling will also probably have to be replaced, he said.
Firefighters left the scene around 2:30 a.m., Gay said.
Friday morning, trucks from the Natrona County Fire District and Bar Nunn Fire Department were still at the fire scene, checking to ensure no hot spots remained in the home.
Attempts to reach the homeowners were unsuccessful by the time this story was published.
Gay said the fire department, through a city and county firefighters' fund, offered the family a motel stay until they could figure out housing, but their daughter who also lives in Bar Nunn provided temporary housing for the couple and their son.
Gay said the department was still planning to deliver the family a check from the firefighters' fund to help them get clothing and meet other immediate needs.
The Natrona County Interagency Fire Investigation Task Force continues to investigate the cause of the fire, Gay said.
In addition to the fire departments, the Natrona County Sheriff’s Office, Banner Health EMS, Rocky Mountain Power, Black Hills Energy and the Bar Nunn Water Department assisted at the scene.
Contact Dale Killingbeck at dale@cowboystatedaily.com
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
