According to Brian Halk of the Bethel Twp. Fire Department, the initial caller said she thought she heard someone screaming. She later called back and she it was not screaming but branches hitting the side of the house.
“As soon as we could go inside, we sent crews inside to do initial searches,” Halk said. “We didn’t find anything. We continued the search with the assumption that maybe somebody was inside until we could verify it one way or another.”
Crews from New Carlisle, Pike Twp. and Bethel Twp. in Miami County also responded to the fire, Halk said. He said the additional manpower helps when fighting a fire in sub-zero wind chills.
“You go from knocking that fire down as quickly as we can to immediately going into sub-zero temperatures,” Halk said. “Normally, we keep a safe rotation on any structure fire. With the possibility of cold, we bring more crews in.”
Halk said the cause of the fire is under investigation and the state fire marshal will be requested to help out.
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