Unattended heater burns fish house near Watkins

LITCHFIELD — Officials believe a heater left unattended caused a fire in a fish house Tuesday evening on Clear Lake south of Watkins.

According to the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office, the fire was reported around 9:20 p.m. The owner of the fish house, John Young, 46, of Watkins, was in another fish house on the lake when his second house started on fire. The fish house was a 7x14 homemade wheel house valued at $400 with approximately $1,200 worth of equipment and personal belongings inside. The Watkins Fire Department was called to extinguish the fire.