By Lance Koppa, the public information officer for the Highland Park Department of Public Safety

At 8:11 p.m. (Sept. 23), Highland Park Department of Public Safety (HPDPS) received a 911 call where a resident reported that her garage was on fire and her car was parked inside the garage. The location of the garage was in the 3600 block of Mockingbird Lane. HPDPS dispatched police and fire apparatus to the scene and the first unit arrived at 8:12 p.m. The officer alerted HPDPS dispatch personnel that smoke could be seen from the alley on the south side of the garage. The officer also located the caller who reported the fire and the officer moved her from the area to a safe location.

Within one minute the first responder reported that the two-story detached garage was fully engulfed in flames. University Park Fire Department and Dallas Fire Rescue were dispatched to assist HPDPS on scene. Due to the intense heat the two-story garage collapsed. The vehicle parked inside the garage at the time of the fire was also destroyed. A wood fence on the west side of the garage sustained heavy damage after the garage collapsed. Other minor damage was observed to a neighbor’s fence on the east and south side.

At an unknown time a gas meter at the corner of the garage was damaged. Atmos Energy was dispatched and shut off the gas line to the meter.

The 3600 block of Mockingbird Lane was closed while firefighters battled the blaze. Mockingbird Lane was reopened at 10:02 p.m. No injuries were reported by the homeowner or firefighters on location.