Bitter cold temperatures hamper crews battling West Sand Lake fire

A West Sand Lake man is out of his home after it went up in flames. He made it out safely, but his home was completely destroyed.

Firefighters received a call around 5:30 p.m. Friday evening for a basement fire. When crews arrived, the fire was coming from the garage, extending into the home. Edward Heffern is the Chief of the West Sand Lake Fire Department.

He says they ran into some water supply issues because they don’t have a hydrant system, so they had to rely on static water sources. The water was frozen, which made things difficult. The fire is under investigation, but he believes a wood stove in the basement may have caused the fire.

"We’ve seen many fires across the country and our state where we have lost a couple of lives. You need to be extraordinary careful with what you’re using to heat and really make sure you’re smoke detectors, your carbon monoxide detectors are in service and ready to go," said Heffern.

Heffern says no pets or firefighters were injured. There were 12 fire departments on scene.