When Ortonville resident Angela Greer smelled smoke on the afternoon of April 7, she said aloud ‘I think the house is on fire.?
Those words were all it took for her 4-year-old daughter, Kaitlyn Martinez, to seek help. Martinez quickly ran to her neighbor’s home and had them call 911. Her quick thinking saved the Edwards street home.
‘I have tried to teach Kaitlyn fire safety and how to call 911 at home, but I know she learned about what to do at Brandon Head Start, and I am so thankful,? Greer said. ‘It was very scary, but thank God we did not lose anything but the back wall of the kitchen.?
The fire began around 3:30 p.m. in the outside wall of the home. Brandon Fire Chief Bob McArthur said he was sure the small blaze was caused by the Detroit Edison ground wire being pulled partially away from the home by a fallen tree branch. Because the home was only getting half its power, electricity back-fed through the telephone ground wire, which was not able to handle the current and sparked the fire.
‘It was a very quick call,? McArthur said. ‘Nobody messed around with it and they called us right away. We were able to get to the house quickly and handle the fire with just one station.?
No one was harmed in the fire, and the family was able to move back in the same night, after wires and electrical problems were taken care of.