Sparks and smoke were coming from a basement electrical box in her parents’ home in southeastern Lawrence on Saturday evening when Priscilla Johnson grabbed the fire extinguisher.

Then she saw a red glow.

“By that time, it was going ablaze, and she said to call 911,” said Doris Bell, Johnson’s mother and the home’s owner with her husband, Loyce.

Firefighters with Lawrence-Douglas County Fire & Medical made quick work of extinguishing the basement fire that began before 6 p.m., and they were apparently able to save the Bell home’s ground floor from major damage.

But the Bells said they didn’t expect to be staying at the home at 1521 E. 28th Terrace – where they had lived since 1974 – Saturday night because of the damage. That was fine with them.

“We’re happy nobody was hurt,” said Loyce Bell, a Westar Energy employee.

Doris Bell works for Hallmark Cards.

The couple, Johnson and her 6-year-old son, Tyler, escaped the home without injury.

Lawrence-Douglas County Fire & Medical Division Chief Shaun Coffey said Saturday night that an investigator was trying to determine a cause and damage amount.