Blaze destroys three houses

Investigators are trying to determine the cause of a Monday morning fire that destroyed three houses under construction and damaged several nearby residences.

Clark County firefighters responded about 6 a.m. and needed about an hour to subdue the intense flames from the half-built houses on Cowboy Rain Drive, near Blue Diamond and Fort Apache roads, department spokesman Scott Allison said.

No injuries were reported.

The blaze broke windows and melted blinds and curtains in three homes just north of the budding Ryland Homes development.

Lynda Costello was awake around 5:50 a.m. when she heard taps on her bedroom window.

She said she opened the blinds to a thick orange glow and a wave of heat from the fire.

Costello and her family fled from their home, which suffered several broken windows, melted blinds and smoke and water damage.

A total damage estimate for the fire was not available Monday.

Allison said the cause of the blaze was not yet known.

"We always assume a fire is suspicious until we find otherwise," he said.

Lightning from recent storms could have left building material smoldering at the site until Monday morning, Allison said.

The partially built houses were not yet connected to power and gas lines, he said.

Nearby residents said work on the Ryland Homes development has started and stopped several times in the past three years.

Workers just recently put up the wooden frames for several of the homes, neighbors said.

"It's suspicious that it happens right when they usually start hammering and nailing," Costello said of the fire.

Workers gathered in a dirt lot near the development around 7 a.m. Monday to see whether construction on the remaining homes would continue.

Representatives from Ryland Homes declined comment on Monday afternoon.

Contact reporter Maggie Lillis at mlillis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0279.