Bismarck Tribune

By TONY SPILDEBy TONY SPILDE

Amber Sharp was in the shower Thursday afternoon when she smelled smoke.

She hopped out, saw flames coming from an upstairs bedroom, threw on some clothes and ran to a neighbor's house to call 911. Not long afterward, firefighters were inside dousing the blaze, while Sharp stood barefoot in the street.

The fire was under control in about 10 minutes, according to Battalion Chief Darol Hopfauf, of the Bismarck Fire Department. Firefighters were unable to determine what caused the blaze, but said it started on an upstairs bed.

Sharp lives in the house with her brother, Josh, and father Mike. Mike Sharp rents the house from Paul Davenport, who lives in Minneapolis. The house is located at 713 N. 19th St.

Fire damage was limited to the bedroom, but there was quite a bit of smoke damage to the rest of the main floor, Hopfauf said. The fire could have spread, had Sharp not shut the bedroom door on her way out of the house.

"That was a very smart thing to do," Hopfauf said.

The Sharps were planning to move next week, and most of their belongings were in boxes in the house. They were unsure immediately how much damage had been done to their things. Mike Sharp was out of town on a bus trip and Josh Sharp was at work when the fire broke out, at about 1 p.m.

The investigation into the fire is closed, Hopfauf said.

(Reach reporter Tony Spilde at 250-8260 or tony.spilde@;bismarcktribune.com.)