Caledonia Argus

Fire destroys home in Money Creek Saturday

Posted: 2/17/04

By Shannon McKinney
Argus News Reporter

No one was hurt during a fire that destroyed an attached garage and rural Money Creek home Saturday, Feb. 14.

Robert Young of 553 Hwy. 76 was home at the time of the fire, but because of the way his home was laid out, did not notice it until it was almost too late.

Houston Fire Chief Mike Olson said the Houston County Sheriffís Department first received a 911 call at 3:24 p.m from Youngís residence. When dispatchers answered the call, no one was on the end of the line. A few minutes later, Youngís neighbors called 911 to report the fire as well.

ìIt was apparently going pretty good before 3:24 p.m. He wasnít aware of it,î explained Olson.

Olson said the fire began in the garage. Young had told the fire department that he had been burning some materials and then had placed the ashes in the garage.

By the time firefighters arrived on the scene, the fire was burning through the roof of the house. Approximately 35 firefighters from Houston, Rushford and Ridgeway fire departments battled the blaze for four hours.

The location of the house on the property made the fire difficult to fight. ìIt was not a fire you could get at really easy,î said Olson.

Thefts reported

In other Sheriffís related news, Wolf Construction reported the theft of three fiberglass ladders at its construction site of a residence in Houston. The thefts occurred sometime between February 6 and 8, 2004. The ladders were valued at over $500.

A man reported the theft of his 1996 blue with red trim Yamaha snowmobile as it was parked at his residence in Caledonia on Tuesday, Feb. 10. The snowmobile is valued at $3,500.

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