was a busy end of the week for the Madison Township Fire Department, which assisted with a barn fire Thursday, Aug. 15, near Morenci and led the fire extinguishing efforts the very same day against a large fire involving several scrap vehicles at a Madison Township auto parts business.
At least 10 fire departments — seven from Lenawee County and three from northwest Ohio — fought a barn fire Thursday afternoon on Dodge Highway in Seneca Township. Officials said the barn was destroyed in the fire.
Fire departments from Adrian, Cambridge Township, Clayton, Fairfield Township, Hudson and Madison Township aided the Morenci Fire Department in its efforts to minimize the barn blaze, which remains under investigation.
That same afternoon, Madison Township firefighters took the helm of the efforts to battle a fire involving seven to nine vehicles near a wooded area behind Dusseau Auto Parts, 2423 Treat Highway.
Madison Township Fire Chief Nic Wilson said the department was dispatched to the car fire at 1:05 p.m. Treat Highway was closed to traffic between U.S. 223 and Beecher Street near the Adrian city limits during the fire.
Upon entering the scene of the fire, it was found that several cars ready to be transported and crushed for metal shredding were ablaze. Wilson said the department used a front-end loader from Dusseau’s to move cars that weren’t affected by the fire.
Overall, there was no impact on residents within the area, Wilson said. Combined efforts allowed for responding departments to punch through the fire quickly, spending a little more than one hour containing the fire.
Seven to nine cars slated for the salvage yard were affected. Assistance was provided by the city of Adrian Fire Department and departments from Adrian, Palmyra and Raisin townships.
Steve Dusseau, president of the auto parts store, said the cars within the storage yard were ready to be crushed and scrapped for metal. Neither he nor the responding firefighters know what caused the vehicles to catch fire.
“One caught fire and it spread to the others nearby,” Dusseau told The Daily Telegram. “(The fire departments) got to it pretty quickly. It could have been a spark or something that started it all.”
Not much is left from Thursday’s fire, Dusseau said. Large, black clouds of smoke that could be seen throughout Madison Township and in Adrian were more than likely from the burning tires, plastic and upholstery in the vehicles, he said. There was no financial loss for the business as the junked cars were ready for metal shredding and scrapping.
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