Fire destroys Whitehall home

The early morning hours last Tuesday were not that unusual for Whitehall resident Bruce Hayes. Things would change in a heartbeat.

Bruce, who suffers from a back injury, could not sleep much like many other nights throughout the year. He decided to step outside to take a look at the night sky, and when he turned around he saw smoke coming from his residence located at 973 MT Highway 2 West.

He rushed inside and made sure his wife Tricia and dog Beasley got out of the house.

After this, Bruce said things got foggy and he doesn't remember much.

Whitehall Volunteer Fire Chief Jeremy Ward said the department was paged to the call at 2:32 a.m. Ward said as soon as they got a couple of miles out of town they could see the glow from the fire, and they knew it was starting to get involved. He said they responded with two trucks and five fire fighters, and Butte responded with three trucks and six fire fighters. He said they also received assistance from Whitehall Ambulance and the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department.

Ward said they were on the scene until 2:06 p.m. the following day. Ward also called the state fire marshal to the scene and the fire is still under investigation.

Ward said the following day the fire rekindled and they returned to the scene for several more hours.

Ward said the fire was a complete loss to the residence.

Two days after the fire, Bruce was thankful for all the fire fighters, ambulance personnel, the Red Cross, employees at the Rodeway Inn and everyone who has helped his family. He said one neighbor came and helped his wife move cars during the fire and another offered him a camper trailer until they find a place to live.

Bruce also wanted to personally thank Rodeway Inn employee Steven Ellis who gave him two gift cards that he had in his wallet. Ellis said he hadn't used them and it was the right thing to do. Looking back at the traumatic ordeal, Bruce said he has been in shock with what happened, but there has been a positive in the aftermath of the fire.

"It restored my faith in humanity," he said.