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Last updated on Monday, September 12, 2016
(LAKE LEMON) - Two homes, a carport, garage and pontoon boat were destroyed in a fire in the 4200 block of Watson Road Tuesday night.
Wind, accessing to water and high heat and downed power lines hindered firefighters as they battled the blazes.
Jackson Township Fire Chief Glenn Elmore says the fire was a raging inferno.
Firefighters from Jackson Township, Fruitdale, Hamblen Township, Nashville, Benton Township and Bloomington Township rushed to the scene.
When firefighters arrived at around 7:30 p.m., the first home on the south side of the lake was engulfed in flames and another home was burning and power lines from the first home were down and sparking on the ground. The nearest water hydrant to get water was on State Road 45 and North Shore Drive - more than five miles away.
Chief Elmore says another fire department was working on pumping water out of Lake Lemon, but had trouble due to problems with their tanker.
One of Jackson's engines got stuck in mud, but firefighters were still able to run lines from the engine to fight the fire. Another department's truck broke down in the middle of the road.
No one was living in the homes, they were used as recreation homes.
The vinyl siding on another home across the street melted due to the intense heat.
Chief Elmore says several small explosions at the first house ignited a pontoon boat tied to a dock.
Firefighters believed the cause of the fire was electrical in nature and started in an attic fan.
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