VBT Fire Department fights blaze at house addition behind Dunham’s

On Christmas Eve, Van Buren Township Fire Fighters were called to a blaze in a structure on the east side of a wall behind Dunham’s, the sporting goods store located in Lakeside Shopping Center.
Fire Marshal Dave McInally said he wasn’t at the fire, but learned the fire started on the back side of the house in which Ken Askew once lived. He said it was in an addition and it stopped at the point it hit the original house.
This was not the house on the lake where the Askews once lived, he pointed out.
At the part of the house that burned there was an exterior heater and a light, but they were not on because the weather was warm, Fire Marshal McInally said. He said the property owner told him a couple of their dogs were outside and one of the dogs has a history of chewing on things. He emphasized no heat sources were on.
McInally said the cause of the fire is yet to be positively determined. The insurance adjuster was at the property on Dec. 26 and another insurance person was due on Dec. 27.
He said the house is uninhabitable now, but will be repaired and will be used again as a residence. The owners are living elsewhere now.
He said if you drive down the road, between Dunham’s and Van Buren Park, you won’t be able to see the burned structure because it is hidden behind the house.