SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP -- Fire officials say a devastating fire in a Springfield Township condo complex may have been electrical. The investigation found that the fire started in the living room of B-25, where there was evidence of several homemade electrical components. The State Fire Marshall's office, the Springfield Township Fire Department, the Lucas County Sheriff's Department and several other agencies are all part of the investigation.
The fire on Monday night could be seen for miles. Firefighters were first called to Hidden Cedars condos on Garden Road near Holland-Sylvania just after 6:00pm. At the height of the fire, flames shot about 50 feet in the air while six fire departments poured water on the building. Three people suffered minor injuries, and 16 units in the complex were destroyed. Four more had damage, either from water or smoke.
Right now, security is standing watch outside the burned-out wreckage of the building. They've had to turn away many curious sightseers. People who live in the other condos are trying to move on, but the scorched hulk of the building and the acrid smell of fire are real reminders of what happened.
Early reports from eyewitnesses said the fire may have started in a kitchen. "We have eliminated that as an area of origin," said Fire Chief Barry Cousino of the Springfield Township Fire Department. "The fire did start in the living room."
Cousino says investigators found several homemade electrical components -- extension cords, a couple of space heaters and a hot plate -- all in the living room of unit B-25. "We didn't send any of those items out to the lab, so we really couldn't pinpoint any one of the components. So for that reason, we're putting the cause as undetermined," said Cousino.
Rance and Diane Williams were tenants of B-25. Some neighbors described the unit as a pack-rat environment, filled to the ceiling with clutter. On Tuesday, Stephen Hartman, an attorney for the condo owners association, told News 11 that Williams was cited by the board a few years ago for violating rules. The specific charge was that he had too much clutter outside his apartment. But Williams says the association did not try to kick him out.
Chief Cousino says there is no evidence of criminal activity in the Hidden Cedars fire, so no one will be charged. In this case, he says it was an accident.
