At about 7:18 p.m. on Saturday, the Redmond Fire Department (RFD) responded to a 911 call for a hot tub fire in the Union Hill area of Fire District 34 near Redmond.

The call came in from a passerby in a car, who reported flames and smoke showing from the back of a house.

According to an RFD press release, when firefighters arrived, they found an intense fire that had consumed the hot tub with heat and flames threatening the house. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire. The hot tub was destroyed and there was minor damage to the house and surrounding structures, the release states.

The occupants of the home were out of the area at the time and there were no injuries while extinguishing the fire.

Firefighters attributed the quick extinguishment to nearby neighbors who had recently cleared their driveway of overhanging trees and vegetation, allowing fire engine access to the back of the house where the hot tub was on fire.

“Many of the homes in this area have long driveways with trees and vegetation close to the driveway access,” said RFD firefighter Todd Anderson in the release. “In this case, it was difficult to determine if we could safely bring the engine down the driveway of the fire address because of vegetative barriers surrounding the driveway. Fortunately, we were able to use the neighbor’s driveway for access to the fire.”

Firefighters would like to remind residents that maintaining open access to their home by trimming back trees and shrubs that block the driveway to the property is vitally important for getting close to a fire and for a quicker extinguishment.