GROSSE POINTE PARK, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) – Some Grosse Pointe Park residents are concerned that some fire hydrants may not be working properly. The concern comes after a house fire Saturday in the 1400 block of Lakepointe Street.
“I’m concerned about the way this was handled,” Beth Cassidy said.
Cassidy’s garage was consumed by flames from a fire that spread from her neighbor’s house. She believes the fire should have been contained, but instead the fire spread and damaged the siding of several nearby homes and two vehicles, including her Chevy Impala, which was parked in her floor-to-ceiling garage burned down.
“I’ve seen this happen before, besides us, and honestly, the fact that they couldn’t connect the hoses to three fire hydrants, the one on Charlevoix and the one in front of the neighbor’s house, the fact that they couldn’t . hoses to the fire trucks, I don’t feel safe, it’s very disheartening,” Cassidy said.
Cassidy lost a lot of valuables in the fire. She said she uses her garage to store antique collectibles and personal keepsakes. She planned to give the Impala to her son.
Cassidy and many other neighbors are now wondering why the fire hydrant in front of the burned home was not suitable to extinguish the fire. She said it took almost 20 minutes for firefighters to throw water on the flames.
“That’s what I’m worried about,” Cassidy said.
Jessica Dawl took to social media and wrote a letter to Grosse Pointe Park City officials to express her concerns about the time it took to extinguish the fire.
Grosse Pointe City Manager Nick Sizeland released the statement:
The City of Grosse Pointe Park is aware of a social media post containing misinformation regarding the Saturday, June 15, Lakepointe fire in the 1400 block of Lakepointe that requires correction.
Fiction: 1400 Block on Lakepointe has no working fire hydrants.
Fact: 1400 Block on Lakepointe has working fire hydrants. Due to the nature of the fire, our firefighters had to pull from multiple hydrants, which is not unusual. (For example, as soon as the second hydrant on the street was tapped, the hydrants began to compete with each other from the same water supply. To counter this, additional hydrants on adjacent streets must be accessed).
Once that supply was built up, firefighters from Park, City, Farms and Detroit were able to extinguish the fire.
We continually strive to assess and improve the quality of life for our residents. Due to aging infrastructure, as with most urban communities, the city has prioritized replacing a portion of the water main annually through its capital improvement plan. Last year included a portion to replace the water main on Mack Ave and through St Clare of Montefalco. This year part of Beaconsfield will be replaced. Over the next six years, the city expects to invest $7,800,000 in water improvements thanks to the infrastructure millage adopted by Grosse Pointe Park residents.
The origins of the fire are under investigation and the city council has met with the homeowners and will provide whatever assistance they can to help them recover from this tragic loss.
The safety of the public is our top priority. We are grateful that no one was injured and for the quick response and assistance of our mutual aid partners and the Detroit Fire Department.
Cassidy and other neighbors said the city’s firefighting needs to be improved so residents can feel confident and safe with firefighters.
“It seems like if they were two separate entities, if there was a separate fire department and they were trained like in Detroit, maybe this wouldn’t have happened,” she said, referring to the city’s decision to combine staff into their police and fire brigade.
Gino Vicci
