By Jim Newell
Review Editor
On Orion Twp. woman has died after a fatal house fire late Thursday night in the 800 block of Vernita Drive, one street over from Pine Tree.
The fire occurred about 3:13 a.m. April 13, with the Orion Twp. Fire Dept. and the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) responding to the emergency.
When sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene, the home was fully engulfed in flames.
“Deputies were not able to check the residence for occupants due to the smoke and fire coming from the house, but were able to evacuate the neighboring residences as a precaution,” said Undersheriff Michael McCabe in a statement from the OCSO.
Fire crews arrived at the home at 816 Vernita Drive at 3:20 a.m. and “reported heavy fire coming from the north side of the home with two vehicles involved in the driveway and the side of the house next door beginning to burn,” said Orion Twp. Fire Chief Robert Smith.
As fire crews began deploying lines, there were reports that someone may still be inside the home.
While authorities were on scene, the homeowner and his son arrived and it was determined their wife and mother was still inside the residence, McCabe said.
“A crew aggressively tried to enter the structure to do a search but was first drove back with heavy fire and smoke conditions,” Smith said.
“After introducing water from the exterior for a couple minutes a second crew made entry and found one victim in the bedroom with no chance of survival. The crews continued putting the fire out and searched for any other occupants,” Smith said.
The victim was a 54-year-old woman.
An autopsy was performed and the medical examiner determined the cause of death to be smoke inhalation, McCabe reported.
Authorities did not release the woman’s name.
Deputies on scene and the OTFD Chief requested the assistance of the OCSO Fire Investigations Unit to assist with a cause and origin investigation.
A Fire Investigator, Detective, and an Investigator from the Medical Examiner’s Office arrived to assist.
The cause of the fire appears to be the disposal of cigarette butts into a plastic garbage can, McCabe said in an official release.
Fire crews remained on scene for several hours extinguishing hot spots and assisting the investigators from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office and Medical Examiner, Smith said.
Smith also thanked the Oakland, Independence and Oxford Fire Departments “for their assistance on scene because this area is still a non-hydrant area and water had to be hauled in.”
“Water never became an issue because of constant training with our neighboring departments and their dedication and professionalism as we work side by side,” Smith said.
“This is such a hard thing for our crews to work feverishly to bring it under control as soon as possible and still not be able to save everyone,” Smith said.
“Our hearts go out to the family and neighbors because this is such a close-knit neighborhood.”