RENO (AP) - Firefighters, guarded by police SWAT teams, battled a blaze at a home in an upscale Reno neighborhood where sheriff's deputies reported shots were fired when they tried to serve an eviction notice Tuesday.
Washoe County Sheriff's spokesman Armando Avina said at least one man was in the home when the fire broke out, and he was believed to still be there Tuesday afternoon despite significant fire and smoke damage to the home in a gated community near Lakeside Golf Course.
SWAT teams from both the sheriff's office and Reno police surrounded the home to make sure no one shot at the firefighters, he said. He said the home's windows have been boarded up.
Deputies reported shots were fired when they identified themselves at the door about 10:40 a.m, Avina said.
Several neighbors said they heard gunshots or small explosions before the fire sent flames 50 feet into the air.
"I heard a bang, a boom and shortly after that I heard sirens," Susan Huckabay told the Reno Gazette-Journal. She said she didn't know the people who live in the burning home, but said the house was "under distress" and the owner faced foreclosure.
The newspaper reported that its foreclosure database indicated the property was in foreclosure as of July 1, but Avina said he could not confirm that.
The Washoe County Assessor's Web site shows the house is listed as owned by Lake Shores Trust. It was listed as sold for $267,100 on July 1 with a taxable value of the property listed as $354,000.
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