VAN BUREN TWP. — A family of six lost their home on State Road 135 South to a fire while they were camping over Labor Day weekend.
The fire was reported just before 1 a.m. Sept. 2 in the 8900 block by a neighbor, said Southern Brown Volunteer Fire Department Chief Evan Johnson.
“I guess he got up in the middle of the night to do something and it was pretty well involved by the time he had seen it,” Johnson said.
A firefighter who lived close by and had a fire engine at his house was the first on scene. “As soon as he got there, he called up that it was a fully engulfed house fire,” Johnson said.
Johnson said the two-story home was more than 100 years old and that the family was camping at the Horseman’s Camp that week. They had not been home since the previous Tuesday, he said.
“It had a lot of native lumber, so once it started, it was pretty well through,” Johnson said.
“No one was there to smell smoke and put it out themselves, maybe salvage the house.”
The cause of the fire is unknown, but Johnson said it was not suspicious and no foul play was suspected.
The home did not have a HVAC system; it was being cooled by three window air conditioning units, he said.
The family is receiving assistance from Red Cross and they do have insurance. Red Cross was on the scene within an hour of being notified. “They got a lot of help really quickly,” Johnson said.
They also have a camper to stay in, along with a week’s worth of clothing they had brought with them for vacation, he said.
Johnson said 11 firefighters from Southern Brown Fire, Southwest Volunteer Fire Department and Pershing Township Volunteer Fire Department assisted at the scene. The last firefighters didn’t leave until about 5 a.m. No injuries were reported.
