MOSES LAKE - An Easter morning fire destroyed a Moses Lake home along with its contents, although the residents managed to escape unscathed.

On Sunday at about 9 a.m., Grant County Fire District 5 crews responded to the blaze on Valley Road Northeast to find the fire already heavily involved, according to District 5 Capt. Travis Svilar.

Flames invaded the roof area of the home and Svilar said from there it spread quickly, leading to a total loss despite much effort to dampen it down with about 30,000 gallons of water.

He explained a lack of structural integrity and the threat of an imminent roof collapse prevented crews from entering and fighting the fire from within the home.

Rescue was fortunately unneeded, he said. The three residents of the home, an adult woman and two adult males, left the structure soon after seeing and hearing the flames outside.

Despite windy conditions, fire crews did manage to confine the fire, protecting several nearby houses from damage by dousing the area with about 1,500 gallons of water a minute for 45 minutes, Svilar said.

The cause and exact starting point of the fire is still under investigation, but Svilar said it appears to have started on the home's outside in the front porch area.

About 26 fire personnel responded to the fire along with nine fire fighting vehicles. Crews were on scene until about 3:30 p.m. Sunday and returned early Monday morning to extinguish a flare-up in the home's floor.

All the home's contents were lost in the fire, along with a couple pet birds, Svilar said.

The residents are now being looked after by the local arm of the American Red Cross, which Svilar called "a huge asset" for fire victims in Moses Lake and Grant County.

"Nobody likes to have their house burn, but to have this happen on a holiday with a total loss of contents, it's a sad day," he said.