Update: Detroit firehouse burned because of firefighter’s late night bible study.
Caption with Detroit Free Press photo by Brian Kaufman: Second Deputy Fire Commissioner Fred Wheeler checks out the Ladder 14 firehouse Tuesday on Crane Street in Detroit. The building erupted in flames early Tuesday morning while the crew was out battling another blaze.
See previous coverage including video tour inside burned firehouse
A Detroit firefighter who found solace in the Bible after a roof collapsed next to him in November, killing his mentor and fellow firefighter Walt Harris, appears to have accidentally caused the fire that gutted the quarters of Ladder 14.
The firefighter had lit some incense and draped a towel over a lamp to cut down on the harsh light in the watch room as he read his bible early Tuesday morning. On cot-watch, the firefighter forgot to remove the towel when a call came in at 12:43 AM for a fire in a vacant apartment building. When Ladder 14 returned to quarters at 1:30 AM, there was fire showing.
Budget cuts had decommissioned the engine company with Ladder 14 a few years ago. They had to wait for about two minutes until Engine 32 arrived to get water on the fire.
This information is from articles in the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News.
