Snowfall pulls wires out of siding in Faribault home, causes home to catch fire Saturday

A Faribault home was left damaged after a fire on Saturday, according to a news release from Faribault Fire Department. Nobody was injured in the fire.

Around 10:10 a.m. Saturday, the Faribault Fire Department, Faribault Police Department, and North Memorial Ambulance responded to a report of smoke and flames in a residence at 1017 6th Ave. SW.

The residents of the home were in the basement and smelled smoke. They went upstairs and saw smoke and flames through the cracks in the walls, the Fire Department said.

When the responders arrived, everyone was safely out of the home.

Firefighters went upstairs, where they found heavy smoke and fire. They began fighting the fire from inside while other crews arrived and fought the fire from an exterior window and a hole cut in the roof by the firefighters.

Crews put out the fire and cleared the scene at around 1:14 p.m.

After investigating the cause of the fire, the Faribault Fire Department said it found that the weight of recent snowfall on the service wires pulled them out of the aluminum siding on the home. The electricity from the wire created resistance and heat with combustible building materials in an empty space, which caused the fire.

“Every fire is a tragedy but this one could have been worse. Had this happened while the occupants were asleep or gone, things could have been different,” Fire Chief Dustin Dienst said.