Everyone got out OK after the fire ignited in the 2½-story wood-frame home on Holly Street off Graphic Boulevard and blew through the roof shortly before 6:30 p.m., responders said.
A possible cause wasn't immediately given, although some speculated that a lightning strike from a sudden thunderstorm may have been responsible.
The fire also burned the side of a neighboring house.
Firefighters were 15 minutes or so into the job when they were pulled out for an exterior attack.
They had the blaze knocked down shortly before 7 p.m. and were continuing to douse it, keeping the flames from solar panels at the opposite end of the roof.
The fire was under control less than an hour after it began.
No injuries were immediately reported.
Jennifer Start and Jo Fehl took the photos and contributed to this account.
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