Scott Cameron, a partially paid firefighter with the Greenville Department of Public Safety, prepares to spray water on a fire that destroyed a home at 11837 W. Baker Road in Eureka Township Thursday evening. . — DN Photo | Corey Smith
EUREKA TOWNSHIP — A family of three and two dogs made it safely out of a house fire Thursday night, and firefighters were able to rescue the family's three cats.
At 7:59 p.m., the Greenville Department of Public Safety was dispatched to a report of a structure fire at 11837 W. Baker Road, approximately 850 feet from the western border of Montcalm and Kent counties.
David Genslak of the Greenville Department of Public Safety holds Milo, the second of three cats rescued from a structure fire Thursday evening at 11837 W. Baker Road in Eureka Township, into his arms. I'm holding it. — DN Photo | Corey Smith
Homeowner Kristin Bowen said she and her husband, Kevin, were in bed when their son, Gage, 19, noticed the house was on fire.
“My husband and I were in bed when Gage came upstairs to get a snack, and the whole front of the house was on fire,” she said. “The whole hallway…flames were coming in through the front door and windows.”
Using a side door, the trio and their two dogs, Buster and Maggie, safely escaped the fire and called 911.
Upon arriving at the scene, GDPS Sergeant Paul Foitz said the structure was fully engaged.
“The entire facade of the building was on fire, with the roof on fire,” he said. “The flames were coming straight up from the propane tank on the balcony, almost like a torch. You could see the forced air, and at that point I feared for our safety. .”
Scott Cameron, a partially paid firefighter, was the first to arrive and prepare to put out the fire, but was alerted to a 20-pound propane tank before attempting to approach the fire.
“The fire had just entered the first room so the whole front of the house was involved,” Prime Minister David Cameron said. “There were a lot of fires even at the entrance.”
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Prime Minister Cameron was walking back from his home to the firetruck as firefighters chose to use a deck gun on top of the engine to attack the blaze from a safe distance when the propane tank exploded. There was a loud explosion that could be heard for miles around.
After the explosion, firefighters used a deck gun to safely spray water on the fire until it was deemed safe enough to approach the fire further, Foitz said.
“After (the propane tank) exploded, we activated the deck gun and it really extinguished the fire to the front of the house,” he said. “I was concerned about the safety of the firefighters. We knew it was going to explode at some point, but it did so pretty quickly. After the fire broke out, we did a quick check and made sure no one was hurt. We were able to make sure it wasn't and at that point we were able to safely get inside and put out the fire.”
Cameron and fellow partially paid firefighter Steve Bills fought the fire together using reins and attacked head-on.
Prime Minister Cameron said: “The aim was to identify areas where heavy fire had started and to prevent it from spreading further into the house.” “We wanted to protect the rest of the house, and we were able to do that for the most part, limiting the fire to the outside and first room.”
Voitz said the decision to extinguish the fire was made after further assessment of the scene and learning that all residents had been safely evacuated.
The fire was successfully extinguished within minutes.
“We did a 360-degree evaluation of home and made sure there were no other extensions, so we went in offensively and aggressively broke this game down,” Foitz said. “All credit goes to Scotty Cameron and Steve Bills. They nailed this one down. Today's stop was a credit to our training and experience.”
GDPS received mutual aid from both the Belding and Oakfield Township Fire Departments.
“I immediately contacted the Belding Fire Department for mutual aid,” Foitz said. “Seeing the scale of the fire, we also contacted Oakfield Township, specifically asking about water. There is a dry hydrant on Johnson Road and a pumping station that will pump water right there. But we were able to extinguish the fire so quickly that we didn't even have to put it out.”
Once the fire was extinguished, firefighters began searching and rescuing the family's three cats, Shilo, Milo and Oreo, who were trapped inside.
It wasn't long before GDPS Officer David Genslak came out of his house with the first of his three cats in his arms.
“When I arrived on the scene, they were already destroying it right away, so my job was mainly to deal with some of the hot spots hidden in the walls,” he said. “As soon as they found the first cat, they gave it to me. My wife and I have two cats at home. Everyone in the department knows that I love cats. So it's great to be able to reunite the cats with their owners and know that they're safe, alive and doing well.”
After successfully reuniting Shilo and Milo with their owners, Gage and Kevin are able to re-enter the basement of the house and rescue Oreo.
The cause of the fire remains unknown and under investigation, Voitz said.
Foitz added that it was not possible to determine whether the home was a total loss, adding that there was also extensive water damage and damage to the roof.
The explosion made the propane tank and grill essential in the case of a fire, but Kristin said she doesn't believe that caused the fire.
“I can't believe it was caused by the grill because I hadn't used it in over a week,” she said.
Christine added that she was just grateful that everyone survived, including the family's five pets, as the home was insured.
“The important thing is that everyone is safe and alive,” she said. “While considering the situation, I will make a hotel reservation for now.''
However, the family's two dogs both managed to escape, but after the fire was extinguished, the family and neighbors began searching for them, and they ran into the surrounding woods and went missing.
“I think the dogs are OK. We just need to find them,” Christine said.
Christine added that Buster is a black Great Dane and Maggie is a white Great Pyrenees St. Bernard, and that both dogs are friendly but can get scared easily.
Montcalm County EMS, Montcalm County Central Dispatch, and Montcalm County Sheriff's Office assisted at the scene.
