Clovis blaze may be arson

The Clovis Fire Department and Curry County Sheriff’s Office suspect arson caused a Tuesday morning blaze near the corner of 21st and Sugarbeet on the northeast end of Clovis.

“The fire was suspicious and will be treated as such until proven otherwise,” said Capt. Karen Burns of the Clovis Fire Department.

Burns said the fire was reported about 10:30 a.m. in a two-story home, and upon arrival, firefighters found smoke coming from the eaves and several windows. The fire was largely confined to a bedroom in the northeast corner of the house, Burns said, but smoke had filled the entire home.

“The fire was extinguished (in the bedroom) and then we realized we had fire in a crawl space or an attic,” Burns said. “We actually had to take off some of the roof to get to the crawl space.”

Burns said the case has been turned over to the sheriff’s office and investigation is ongoing.

“From what we have so far it’s a burglary and an arson, but we don’t yet have much information and I hope to have more details (Wednesday) morning,” said Sheriff Roger Hatcher.

Burns said the home was owned by Holland Farms and a single tenant lived on the premises. That person was not home at the time of the blaze and no injury was reported.