House lost to flames

BRICELYN — A man and his dogs are without a home today after his rural home burned Monday night.

Doug Pike’s house on a rural 5-acre plot at 52035 90th St., seven miles north of Bricelyn, was fully engulfed in flames when the Bricelyn Fire Department arrived around 9:30 p.m., said Fire Chief Craig Stallkamp.

The air temperature at that time, according to the National Weather Service, was 1 degree above zero. Firefighters didn’t clear the scene until 5 a.m., Stallkamp said.

The weather service indicates the mercury rose to 3 degrees by that time.

With water dousing the flames all night, the place was a total loss.

“Everything was frozen solid,” he said. “There is just a shell standing.”

The Bricelyn firefighters received assistance from Wells, Walters and Frost, he said.

The chief said Pike was the sole resident and said he made it out safely with three dogs. He said he was staying with friends. The American Red Cross assisted him, too, he said.

The firefighters were able to keep warm because they kept moving, Stallkamp said. He said South Central Rehab had a trailer available for warming up.

“It was cold and windy,” he said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Stallkamp said the State Fire Marshal’s Office has visited the acreage.