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Our neighbors behind us and one house to the south are building a new home. Last Spring one cloudy, damp afternoon, I looked out the sliding glass door in our dining room that opens to our patio and deck.
The air was so hazy that I could barely see our fence. "My, has it got that foggy?"  I wondered. However, something told me it wasn't fog.
As I stepped outside, I immediately realized it was smoke. Then I saw it. Smoke was pouring from under the eaves of the house that backs our next door neighbor's house. I stood mesmerized for a few seconds; then I ran into the house to get my daughter.Â
By the time we got to the back yard, we could see flames also licking up the sides of the eaves. Then, we heard the sirens.Â
When the firefighters arrived, they began cutting holes in the roof and squirting water down into the attic. That turned the smoke to black, angry clouds that began permeating the air and burning our eyes.
"Let's walk around and see how bad it is," my daughter said. The police had blocked off the street; but it was only the third house down, so we could easily see that the garage was also on fire , burning out of control.
Long story short, by the time the firemen extinguished the blaze, the house was standing but a total loss.
We later learned that the family's 12-year-old son was home alone while his parents were out shopping and had somehow caught the garage on fire. He called the fire department and exited the property, so no one was hurt.
However, the smoke smell permeated our house and our neighbor's houses the rest of the day.
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