Bracing for this week’s forecast for more snowy, icy weather, the Road Commission for Oakland County said they are ready, despite last week’s fire at their Springfield Township garage.
‘We’re very confident that we’re in a good position to handle whatever storm comes,? commission spokesman Craig Bryson said Monday.
Despite the loss of 17 pieces of heavy equipment in a Tuesday, Jan. 20 fire at their Dixie Highway garage, the commission has received help from several agencies, including the Michigan Department of Transportation and road commissions in Wayne and Genesee counties.
‘We have more offers than we can take up on,? Bryson said.
Springfield Township Fire Chief Charlie Oaks said the alarm came in at about 5:25 p.m., and the fire was designated ‘under control? at about 8:14 p.m. Crews were on site well into the early morning hours, however, for cleanup operations.
Fire departments from Groveland, Brandon, North Oakland (Holly), White Lake, Waterford and Independence joined in the fight against the fire, and Oaks said the new North Oakland ‘Hazmat? team was mobilized because of concerns about motor oil and other chemicals in the garage. The Salvation Army brought two mobile canteens to serve hot food and drinks to the firefighters.
‘We had some good mutual aid,? Oaks said.
No one was injured in the incident, although Oaks said four or five firefighters slipped on the ice caused by water at the scene. The winter temperatures also caused frozen hoses, and some trucks were difficult to operate in the cold, Oaks said.
Outside investigators have been called in to investigate the cause of the fire, although the first deduction was an electrical short in one of the trucks.
‘We’re pointing to a defective piece of equipment,? Oaks said, ‘but there’s a lot of things you can’t rule out.?
Brent Bair, RCOC managing director, gave high praise to firefighters for saving as much equipment as they could.
‘You hear about firefighters rushing into burning buildings to save people,? Bair said. ‘We had firefighters coming into our building to drive trucks out.?
Oaks appreciated the praise, but said it was simply a matter of priorities.
‘We get paid to do two things: protect lives first and property second,? the chief said. ‘We did not jeopardize a life to save any property.?
While most of the garage was destroyed, Bryson said the commission is still using the Dixie Highway site as a staging area. With the help of the loaned and leased equipment, crews will still be ready to respond according to plan when snow and ice require it.
The long-range rebuilding is a bit uncertain. Bryson said insurance adjustors are still determining whether the facility is a total loss. While insurance will cover repair or replacement of the structure, the replacement of an estimated $2,588,100 of vehicles and equipment must be paid from the commission budget.
‘We now have to come up with money to replace trucks and so forth,? Bair said. ‘Ultimately, it will come out of the roads.?