Crime & Safety

Small Forest Fire In Shelby Extinguished Before Spreading to Nearby Apartments

The Shelby Township Fire Department put out a small forest fire inside of the Spring Hill Apartments Thursday.

The Shelby Township firefighters battled a small forest fire Thursday at the Springhill Apartments on Ryan and Utica roads.

Batallion Chief Lance Watters told Patch the fire off Hill Drive may have been smoldering since last night in the small wooded area behind a cluster of apartments, but they were not alerted until the morning when they received several emergency calls about the fire.

It took firefighters nearly 45 minutes, 1,000 gallons of water and 60 gallons of foam, to extinguish the fire Thursday morning. 

Find out what's happening in Shelby-Uticawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Watters said the fire could have spread to the nearby apartments because the winds were strong around 11 a.m.

No apartments were damaged nor were any civilian and firefighters injured.

Find out what's happening in Shelby-Uticawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

It's unclear who is responsible for the fire. However, Watters noted the township would pursue charges if someone was suspected of causing the blaze.

Watters said someone has been illegally burning wood, tree trunks and possibly garbage in the wooded area for some time, instead of paying for the proper disposal of the material. Burning leaves and having bonfires without a township-issued permit is illegal.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Shelby Township Fire Department at 586-731-3476.


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