ADDISON ? A pole-barn located at 5700 Hagerman Road, between Mckail and Bordman roads, was completely destroyed by fire yesterday afternoon.
When Addison Twp. firefighters were called to the scene at approximately 1:20 p.m. the 30-foot by 50-foot pole-barn was ‘fully involved? in the fire and the roof had already collapsed, according to Fire Chief George Spencer.
‘It was gone before we got here,? said the chief, noting a ‘column of smoke was visible for about three or four miles.?
The barn, which consisted of a wooden frame and steel siding, was used only for equipment storage, Spencer said.
Spencer estimated it took 20 to 25 minutes to knock down the blaze. Firefighters spent about 1? hours at the scene.
No injuries to either civilians or fire personnel were sustained, Spencer said.
Although the cause of the fire was still under investigation at press time, Spencer said he was ?99.9 percent sure? it was caused by a lawn mower the owner used that day and stored in the barn 20 to 30 minutes prior to the blaze.
The chief said the mower could have ignited the blaze in a variety of ways.
It could have had a malfunction such as an electrical short, Spencer said.
Another possibility is the hot muffler could have ignited some dry grass on the mower or made contact with some combustible material stored in the barn, Spencer said.
Oxford firefighters provided mutual aid at the scene, while fire personnel from the Orion and Oakland township departments covered Addison’s Station #2 on Rochester Road.
This is the second fire on Hagerman Road this year. The other was a house fire that happened in January at 3470 Hagerman Road, north of Frick Road.