9 people escape fire caused by faulty chimney
Two women and seven children escaped safely Friday morning after fire spread from a faulty fireplace chimney to an attic at a home in Ypsilanti Township, firefighters said.
Smoke woke one of the residents at the home in the 2200 block of State Street early this morning, Ypsilanti Township Fire Marshal Larry James said.
The residents tried to use a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, but it was not effective. By the time firefighters arrived shortly after 5:30 a.m., flames were shooting through the roof, James said.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze, James said, but the fire still caused about $20,000 damage to the house and rendered it uninhabitable until repairs can be made. Firefighters were on the scene about an hour.
No one was injured. Besides the residents, two dogs also made it out safely, James said.
It’s fortunate someone noticed the smoke, James said. The home did not have working smoke detectors.
Comments
Richard
Sat, Nov 5, 2011 : 11 p.m.
Thankfully they all made it out. A home fire is always a bad thing, but even worse when its cold and the holidays are coming. I hope they get help from the community even though Verna McDaniel gutted county funding to non-profits. Maybe she will take them in.