Brandon Twp.- Township firefighters battled two blazes last weekend, one of which displaced a family, and the other which was deemed arson.
Fire Chief David Kwapis said township firefighters were called to an early Sunday morning duplex fire in the 400 block of Cedar Lake Lane in the Village of Ortonville. The first emergency call received reported heavy smoke in the area coming from an undetermined location. Cedar Lake Lane runs west off Church Street and a pedestrian found the source. Upon arrival, firefighters made entry and extinguished the fire after a small backdraft in which a window was blown out in the bedroom where the blaze began.
‘A quick attack was made and kept the fire in check to the room and its contents,? said Kwapis, who estimated damages to the building and contents at $40,000-$50,000.
The duplex, which is rented by a woman and her teenage daughter, was unoccupied at the time of the fire. The pair are currently staying with family in Groveland Township.
The duplex fire may have been electrical in nature. While it is still under investigation, it is not suspicious, unlike a second blaze firefighters responded to Sunday evening.
That fire, in the 3000 block of Hawthorne in Sashabaw Meadows Mobile Home Park, destroyed an exterior shed to a vacant mobile home without electricity.
‘We believe the fire was started by juveniles because of other circumstances in the area,? said Kwapis.
‘It was a small fire and another quick extinguish.?