Firefighters from several communities spent 2½ hours Monday night and Tuesday morning battling a blaze that destroyed the Mallard Creek Golf Course club house, which also contained a restaurant.
Lebanon Fire District personnel were dispatched to Mallard Creek at 11:27 p.m. Monday, a department statement said.
The first crews to arrive found a “well-established” fire in the club house. The incident commander called for a second and then a third alarm very early in the fire. These greater alarms brought mutual aid responses from Sweet Home, Albany, Tangent, Scio and Brownsville. Approximately 35 firefighters were on the scene.
Most of the mutual aid units were water tenders to help provide water supply to the rural location, since the nearest fire hydrant was approximately five miles away. The fire was brought under control and substantially extinguished around 2 a.m. Tuesday.
Fire investigators from the Linn-Benton Fire Investigation Team completed their fire cause determination Tuesday afternoon. The investigators determined that an electrical malfunction in a circuit breaker sparked the fire. Void spaces in an addition to the building promoted flame spread and hampered firefighting efforts.
Dollar loss estimates for the building and contents is estimated to be $1.3 million.
Additional images and video of the fire may be viewed on the Lebanon Fire District Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/LebanonFireDistrict.