Fires keep crews busy in area

Firefighters in the area were busy the past week with a spate of fires surrounding the Thanksgiving holiday.

The most serious incident was a garage fire on Wednesday, Nov. 22, at a home in Brevator Township north of Cloquet in St. Louis County. A 64-year-old man suffered serious burns when trying to retrieve items from the burning garage. He was in stable condition by early this week.

Deputies and the Cloquet Area Fire District were called to the 3500 block of Nelson Road, just west of Minnesota Highway 33, at 3:30 p.m. that Wednesday. Medical help was called in to deal with the man's injuries. The fire was quickly extinguished, but the detached garage was a total loss. No other damage was done by the fire.

The CAFD was assisted by firefighters from Industrial and Grand Lake township departments.

Investigators from CAFD, the SLC Sheriff's Office and the Minnesota State Fire Marshal's Office are investigating the cause of the fire. There is no foul play suspected. No other structures were damaged by the fire.

CAFD assistant chief Corey Larson was on the scene of the garage fire and had some words of caution for those who are facing a fire.

"In the event of a fire, if it's property or pets, please don't reenter the structure," Larson advised. "That's where a lot of injuries and fatalities occur. It's best to exit, call 911 and when we arrive, we will mitigate everything we can. Animals usually find a way out and property isn't worth risking your life."

The CAFD had 10 emergency calls on Nov. 22, including another fire in Brevator Township that was outside a home and extinguished with no structure damage.

On Sunday, Nov. 26, residents were displaced by an attic fire in a home on Cloquet's west side, on the 700 block of Larch Street. The CAFD responded to a call at 6 p.m. and found the attic of the small home completely engulfed, with smoke and flames coming from the roof. Crews attacked the fire from the outside and went inside to finish what became a three-hour job.

Fire damage was confined to the attic, the CAFD reported. There was significant water and smoke damage in the living area, making it uninhabitable. It wasn't clear how many people lived in the home, but no injuries were reported. One cat was rescued and two others are presumed to have escaped on their own.

As we move into the cold winter months, Larson encouraged people turning on the furnace for the first time or looking at different avenues for heating to abide by the safety precautions.

"Be aware that space and propane heaters targeted for garages and barns are not at all safe for a residential setting," he said. "Certain electric heaters are safe for homes. Again, it's on the homeowners to make sure they follow all the safety recommendations, ensuring clearance around the heater and making sure it's plugged directly into an outlet, not into extension cords or power strips."

People also need to have working carbon monoxide detectors. Larson recommends changing the batteries twice a year and testing the detectors at the same time.

"Carbon monoxide is odorless, tasteless and colorless," he said of the potentially lethal gas. "The only way we can detect it is when those alarms go off and then we can come and test and mitigate."

CAFD firefighters were also called to Cloquet's West End Tuesday night for about an hour on a report of smoke in an apartment building next to Holy Smokes.

CAFD battalion chief Jeremy Hutchinson was on duty. He said a resident in the upstairs apartment called 911 at 8:35 p.m. to report smoke coming in from the basement.

Firefighters eventually determined there was no fire, and the smoke was created by a problem with the furnace.

"With the amount of smoke, a fire was a very real possibility," Hutchinson said.