Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Palouse residents will hold a benefit for the Daniel and Jessica Garceau family, who lost their house in a fire which occurred in Palouse Friday night, Feb. 3.
Jessica was injured and taken to St. Joseph Hospital in Lewiston.
The benefit will be at the Palouse Community center Feb. 24, from 3:30 to 8:00 p.m. and will include a silent auction and spaghetti dinner.
The Palouse Fire Department got a call at 9:15 p.m. Friday night from two children who were home alone and escaped the fire. Firefighters arrived at a residence to see a fire spreading from the kitchen.
They attacked the fire from the exterior. Once the flames were controlled, Palouse Fire Chief Mike Bagott went inside and discovered Jessica Garceau on the floor of the dining room.
She was evacuated and flown by Life Flight to Lewiston.
She is expected to be released in a matter of days. Her primary injuries were smoke inhallation.
Bagott said that the cause of the fire is unknown at this point, although he suspects it was electrical. Rich Dragoo, Fire Investigator for the Pullman Fire Department, is due to investigate it Friday.
Bagott reported that a 10-year-old girl led a younger sister to safety, then used their mother’s cell phone to call 911.
The chief said that it’s his understanding that the children’s mother was in town and heard the fire alarm go off from the station while she was downtown. She apparently made her way to the home and entered it, thinking the children were still inside.
Pullman’s Fire District 12 and Colfax’s Fire District 11 provided mutual aid to the call.
“We want to express our gratitude for their help,” said Bagott.
Donations to the victim’s family may be made to American West Bank, P.O. Box 219, for Daniel and Jessica Garceau. Daniel is the son of Kay McGhee, who owns the home.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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