Motor home fire displaces a family of 5

OGDEN — A family of five that had been staying in a motor home is looking for a new place to live after fire gutted the vehicle.

Firefighters were called at about 9:30 a.m. Thursday to a home at 1220 Sheridan Drive and found heavy smoke and flames coming from a motor home parked in the driveway, said Ogden Deputy Fire Chief Chad Tucker.

"The family of five is kind of in between places, and so they were staying in a motor home at the side of a (relative's) house," Tucker said.

Crews were able to knock down the two-alarm fire quickly, but the motor home and all of the family's belongings — including cash withdrawn from the bank Wednesday to buy Christmas presents for the children — were destroyed. Flames also did minor damage to the relatives' home, Tucker said.

The American Red Cross is arranging accommodations for family members, who had planned to move soon into a three-bedroom apartment.

Tucker said a problem with an extension cord that was running from the home to the motor home is believed to be the cause of the fire. He estimated the damage at $20,000.

— Geoff Liesik