A dark cloud of smoke curled its way up the morning sky. The Wicked Witch of the West could have been melting for all Gainesville knew.
But no ruby slippers were found under the abandoned house that caught fire Friday - just some fond memories for Suzi Gann.
The house, located at 2212 SW 38th Terrace, reminded her of a place she grew up in at Dixie County, with "metal roofs and country cooking."
Now, it's no more.
By Monday, a charred frame of a house and a faint smell of smoke remained.
"I'm really bummed out," Gann said.
Engine 19 arrived about three to four minutes after the fire was reported at about 11:30 a.m., said Richard Saulsberry, district chief at Gainesville Fire Rescue.
"It was ridiculous," said Dylan Thomas, a student at Santa Fe College who saw officials arrive. "They came so fast."
"I heard ‘pow! pow!' and it caught on fire," said Gann, who was walking her dog, Tokoro, near the house at the time.
Others saw the smoke from a distance.
"I was dropping my husband off at a meeting," said Shannan Brower, a former firefighter. "I saw the boom cloud."
Brower began taking pictures and said that she had gotten used to the different smells of smoke from firefighting.
Although the cause of the fire is still under investigation, officials believe the house's propane tank played a part.
"The propane tank certainly contributed to the spread of the fire," said Kelly DeRasmo, a fire safety inspector and paramedic for Gainesville Fire Rescue.
No one was injured in the house fire.
Gann said it was a shame the vacant house caught fire but hopes she can find out more about who lived there.
