SPRINGFIELD, Ore. (KMTR) -- An early Saturday morning house fire that seriously damaged a home in east Springfield is still under investigation, as neighbors remain concerned and curious about the home the fire damaged.
The fire call came in around 2:45 a.m. Saturday, February 4th, 2012. Originally, crews responded to the location on South 70th Street and Glacier Street in the Thurston-area of Springfield, believing it was a tree fire. When crews arrived on scene, they discovered part of a home engulfed in flames.
Shortly after crews arrived, part of the home's roof collapsed. Springfield Fire Investigators say the home is vacant and no one was inside when the fire happened.
Meanwhile, several neighbors say the home has been abandoned for at least a year, but lots of personal property remains on the home site.
Neighbors have also noticed that at random points throughout the year, several people have showed up on the property to either take or dump things.
In the last year, a boat was dumped on the property and tied to a tree. An old Tecmo Bowl arcade game console also remains in the front yard of the property.
The home sits right behind Jesse Maine Memorial Park. Today, much of the contents inside the home remain heaped up against a fence bordering the park.
Neighbors say while the property hasn't been all too problematic, they has some concerns about the home.
“I've actually asked questions around and haven't really go too much information except when the abandoned vehicles were there,” says Chris Moorhead, a neighbor living near the abandoned home.
“It is a little bit worrisome, my kids sometimes walk up there to play with the neighbor kids and go to the park, so it's a little bit worrisome, but we keep an eye on it pretty good at least when we hear a vehicle coming in and out,” says Moorhead.
Other neighbors NewsSource 16 spoke with say the home has attracted trespassers in the last year. On Friday afternoon, at least two neighbors spotted three people who appeared to be teenagers on the property. It's unknown at this point if they're connected to the fire in any way.
Springfield Fire investigators are continuing to look for a cause of the fire.
