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About 22 families were displaced last week from the fire at the Harbour Club Apartments in Van Buren Township. The incident was caused by an electrical fire, destroyed about 32 apartments.Officials are calling the recent fire at Harbour Club Apartments in Van Buren Township accidental in nature.
According to Mark Nicholai, fire chief of Van Buren Township, the fire was caused by an electrical shortage in the storage room area. The fire investigation team, along with Michigan State Police investigators, have ruled out arson and suspicious causes for the incident. The fire investigation will continue, however, officials said.
“We’re thankful there’s no loss of life,” said Nicholai. “This was our largest fire here since the Yankee Air Museum. Everyone worked well together, but it’s unfortunate it was a total loss of the building.”
The fire started at about 8:52 p.m. on Jan. 23 in the first floor of building 21. The fire started in the storage area, traveled up the three floors through void spaces and destroyed 32 apartments, according to Lt. Dan Besson of the Van Buren Township Fire Department.
“Calls reported that a patio was on fire, but once we arrived, fire crews confirmed flames had already spread through the roof,” he said.
Besson said fire officials were hampered by the sub-freezing temperatures, which caused the fire to spread and rapidly change the conditions of the incident. Mutual Aid was then called in from Belleville, Romulus, Canton, Pittsfield, Ypsilanti, Sumpter and Augusta townships because of the size of the incident.
The fire was declared under control more than five hours later at about 2:30 a.m., Besson said.
“We searched each apartment checking for pets, hidden fires and structure stability,” he said.
Twenty-two families were displaced, along with several dogs, cats and other household pets. As of Monday, there were still two cats lost or unaccounted for and about 75 percent of the residents have relocated into new apartments on site, according to officials.
Damage is estimated at about $1 million in property. The only reported injury was a firefighter who sprained an ankle, officials said.
Assistance has been provided to displaced families through the American Red Cross, the Van Buren Public Safety Chaplin Corps, the fire auxiliary groups and other area organizations and businesses.
All residents have access to household goods collected by management, residents and area businesses. Providence Management, the company that manages the building, will continue to collect cash, non-perishable food, furniture and other household needs.
Anyone who would like to donate can contact Michelle Herrst at (734) 697-9156 to find out what the immediate needs are for those affected by the fire.
