The first fire is blamed on food cooking on the stove left unattended, while the cause for the second fire is still under investigation, said Westland Assistant Fire Chief John Adams. No one was injured in either fire.
At approximately 2:15 p.m. Thursday, firefighters responded to a fire in a middle unit of a building consisting of four ranch-style condominiums in the complex off North Wayne Road south of Joy.
“The gentleman who lives there has a habit of cooking with grease. He prepared a meal and fell asleep. He left the stove unattended,” said Adams. “He hadn’t cleaned the range hood. The fire got into the roof line directly over the stove.”
A smoke detector in the man’s unit had been set off by his cooking, Adams said, so he had disconnected it. As a result, residents in the adjoining units on Spring Valley Drive reported the fire when their smoke detectors sounded.
“One of our guys pulled the resident out of his unit,” said Adams.
The fire moved into the shared attic space and the damage made three of the units with common walls uninhabitable, Adams said, while a resident was allowed to stay in the fourth unit.
The second fire was reported at 7:50 a.m. in the occupied fourth unit. The cause of that fire is still under investigation, Adams said.
“We need to rule out a number of things like electrical that may have been compromised by the first fire,” said Adams.
Firefighters were still on the scene midday Friday assisting the displaced residents in gathering belongings from their units. All had places to stay.
“Life safety is a number one priority for us, we made sure everyone has a place to go. They are all safe and dry,” said Adams.
Damage to the building was estimated at $300,000 not including contents.
No comments:
Post a Comment