UPDATE:
An investigation is under way to determine the cause of a fire that gutted a house on 3rd Avenue in Big Rapids on Sunday.
Paul Johnson, who lives a few blocks from the house, says he was just out for a bike ride when he came across the blaze.
“We were just riding out bikes and this was three and a half, four hours ago – the place was torched, it was just going up. The fire department's been on hand for at least three or four hours. I guess somebody was using a space heater which, this time of the year, it happens.”
Big Rapids Deputy Director of Public Safety Steve Schroeder says the cause hasn't yet been determined.
“We're still investigating the cause, the actual cause. However, it looks like it started high in that first floor, between the first and second floors.”
Schroeder says the blaze was called in at around 8:00 pm and, being an older home, the construction of the building meant there were lots of “nooks and crannies” where the fire spread.
“We ended up actually having extensive overhaul operations for hot spots.”
Schroeder says the fire does not look suspicious and that everyone made it out of the building safely.
ORIGINAL STORY:
As of 11:30 pm on Sunday, Big Rapids firefighters are still working to completely put out a blaze at a home on 3rd Avenue between Maple Street and Washington Street.
Paul Johnson, a neighbor who lives a few blocks from the house that caught on fire, says he believes it was a space heater that went bad.
He says the house was engulfed in flames earlier on and it took firefighters nearly 3 and a half hours to get the blaze under control, although he didn't see anyone injured in the blaze.
We'll have more details on this story as they become available.
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