Fire destroys Mark Twain couple's first home

All that was left after a fire destroyed Ashley and Kyle Nixon's Mark Twain home on Tuesday was a barbecue and wheelbarrow, said Kyle, 27.

"Everything that we owned since we've been together - everything's gone. There's nothing left," said the Meeks Lumber employee, still in shock from the news.

Storey County Fire Chief Joe Curtis said crews were called out to the home at the Storey and Lyon county line at 2:30 p.m.

When crews arrived, the two-story home was "fully involved," said Curtis.

"All we could do was contain it," he said.

Firefighters from Storey, Lyon, Carson, Douglas, Bureau of Land Management and Nevada Division of Forestry responded to the blaze.

About 20 spot fires were ignited in nearby brush and 1.5 acres of wildland burned, Curtis said.

Kyle said his dogs somehow escaped the home into the backyard and neighbors had to break down the fence to get the animals out.

"My animals almost died, and my neighbors saved them," he said.

Now, said Kyle, he's not sure what will happen. He hopes insurance will allow them to rebuild their first home, bought just three months ago. In the interim, they'll stay in a hotel room provided by the Red Cross.

Curtis said the cause is under investigation.