PORTAGE (WKZO-AM) — Firefighters in Portage had to battle the flames, the bitter cold and a broken gas meter as they responded to a report of a house fire where Handel Street dead ends.
The small home and garage was about two-thirds consumed by the time emergency personnel arrived after 7 p.m. Monday, but they quickly learned that the occupants had already escaped on their own.
The intense blaze was aided by a broken natural gas meter that continued to burn until Consumers Energy was dispatched to shut off the line.
The home is a total loss. Investigators are trying to figure out what sparked the fire.
– John McNeill
