A La Plata County family was left without access to power, water and propane after an attic fire caused significant damage to their La Plata Canyon home Tuesday west of Durango, according to the Fort Lewis Mesa Fire Protection District.

A neighbor reported smoke at 11:23 a.m. coming from the home in the 700 block of County Road 124. Firefighters responded within five minutes, said John Lee, chief of the fire district.

The single-family home was unoccupied when firefighters arrived, Lee said. No injuries were reported, and an estimate of the cost of damage to the building was not immediately available, he said.

The cause remained under investigation Wednesday.

“The neighbor who called it in is what really saved that house,” Lee said. “It gave us that extra time to get there. We were only five minutes away from it being fully engaged.”

Firefighters confined flames to the attic of the home and were able to save personal property inside the building by either removing it or covering it with tarps, Lee said. The roof and ceilings in rooms around the center of the house sustained smoke and water damage.

“It was the best of a worst situation,” Lee said.

Fort Lewis Mesa Fire Protection District left the scene around 5 p.m. Twelve firefighters responded. The homeowners are staying with the neighbors who called firefighters, he said.

bhauff@ durangoherald.com