Firefighters battle, douse house blaze in the Estates

Oct. 28--North Collier firefighters doused a Golden Gate Estates house fire that began around 7 a.m. Friday.

The home is in the 300 block of 22nd Avenue Northwest, which is south of Immokalee Road and just southwest of the Orangetree community, fire officials said.

A neighbor saw the glow of the flames and called firefighters, said Pete Soto, a fire inspector with the North Collier Fire Control and Rescue District.

"He tried to extinguish it with a ... waterhose, but unfortunately it was too short," Soto said.

Four trucks, a water tender and a battalion chief raced to the scene and started to battle the flames.

"They went in," Soto said. "They put it out right away. Probably saved the whole house."

Soto said the blaze likely started in the kitchen.

Firefighters left the scene around 8:20 a.m.

Calvin Keller, who built the house in 1991 and lives there by himself, arrived at his charred home shortly after.

Deputies called him at work and he immediately hurried home, worrying the whole way over.

"Well, I didn't know how bad it was," Keller said. "I didn't know if I'm going to be able to stay here. I don't know what it is, you know. Not knowing is hard. I don't like what I see, but it's easier once you've seen it, because you imagine the worst."

Though no person was hurt in the blaze, the flames did claim one victim.

"It killed my bird," Keller said. "I had a pet cockatoo I've had since '88."

Keller said he has an idea of how the fire might have started.

"I had my coffeemakers -- it didn't do it -- sitting on the stove, but when I reached to shut the button off I must've just bumped the stove top, you know what I'm saying, it went down," he said. "And that's what did it I think. I'm sure that's it."

Keller said he was in the process of painting and redoing the house and recently canceled his insurance to get a better rate. For the time being, he can stay with his sister who lives close by, he said.

"It's not livable right now," Keller said. "It's not as bad as it could've been. They were pretty fast in response. Real fast. That's a good thing."

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