Garage Used as Living Space Catches Fire in Sterling Alley; No Injuries

A garage being used as a living space caught fire in the 600 block of North Fourth Street alley in Sterling, prompting a 5:13 p.m. dispatch to Sterling Fire Department and Sterling Police Department crews. Police units arrived first and reported a garage actively on fire; firefighters knocked down the flames and found no victims after search operations.

Sterling Police Department crews on scene reported the active blaze when fire units arrived. Responders isolated the access door to limit fire growth and deployed a hose line for extinguishment. Fire attack began from an exterior window and moved to the interior once crews cleared the immediate tenable space. Firefighters completed overhaul operations and returned a short time later to complete a fire watch, a standard procedure for the department.

Units responding to the fire included: Fire 1, Fire 11, Engine 10, Engine 12, Medic 1, Medic 5, and Sterling Police Department. Crews conducted a simultaneous primary search through a man door on entry and completed a secondary search after knocking down flames; no occupants were found and no injuries were reported.

Sterling Fire Department noted the garage was being used as a living space. The department emphasized its search priorities in a public post: “These fires while small and seemly uneventful are a testament to the aggressive search culture of our crews. This garage was found to be in use as a living space and is not uncommon for us to see that. We treat every fire as an occupied space until we can determine that it is not.”

Photographs released by the department show visible flames from the alley. “Flames are seen from a garage fire in the 600 block of N. Fourth Street Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (Courtesy Sterling Fire Department Facebook page)”

Officials have not released a cause or an estimate of property damage, and no names of owners or occupants were provided. The department’s emphasis on treating all structure fires as potentially occupied reflects concern for life safety when auxiliary spaces such as garages are repurposed for sleeping or long-term use.

For Logan County residents, the incident underscores two practical points: improvised living spaces can increase fire risk and most responses require aggressive search and overhaul operations even when fires appear small. Sterling Fire Department and Sterling Police Department remain the primary points of contact for updates; the department has not indicated whether a formal origin and cause investigation is underway. Future follow-up reporting will aim to provide any damage estimates, investigator findings, and whether the occupant situation was clarified.