Fire destroys Grant pole barn

GRANT TWP. – Fire destroyed a pole barn Thursday night at the Brian Gillis residence, 7052 N. Quarterline Road. Five fire departments were called to fight the blaze, including Grant Twp., Free Soil/Meade, Hamlin Twp. and Fountain Area fire departments.

“We had a steel roof and a steel ceiling and the fire was in between the two in the attic which had 12-inches of blown-in insulation,” Grant Fire Chief Ron Melchert said. “We just couldn’t get to the fire.”

Melchert said he did not know what started the fire, but it was somewhere in the attic of the approximately 32-foot by 32-foot building. In addition to destroying the building, Gillis also lost a pick-up truck and couple of boats along with thousands of dollars worth of other items.

“One of the other challenges was that we had oxygen tanks used for welding,” Melchert said. “We needed to stay clear of them until they vented.”

Melchert said the 79 degree temperatures, when the departments arrived shortly after 6 p.m., caused the possibility of heat exhaustion for the firefighters. For that reason he called Life EMS ambulance to stand-by, however nobody was injured.

The Free Soil/Meade Fire Department Auxiliary also responded to the scene.