By Georgia Thelen
Staff Writer
The Feb. 27 village council meeting held a special segment for the officers and families involved in the Jan. 28 fire at the Lake Orion Pet Centre.
Lake Orion Police Dept. officers Brian Martinez and Todd Stanfield were patrolling the area when the flames started. The two officers went into the building and evacuated all three upstairs apartments and rescued four kenneled dogs.
Approximately six hours of hard work from officers and countless firemen resulted in no human or animal lives lost to the flames.
At the Feb. 27 meeting, Martinez and Stanfield received special tributes of appreciation from the State of Michigan and acknowledgment from state Representative John Reilly.
“When we have unexpected things happen in our lives we want people to respond, for first responders to be prepared, and that’s exactly what happened here. I think it’s just a great example of the training you guys have gone through,” said Reilly.
The victim’s of the fire were also presented with donated funds at the Feb. 27 meeting after losing everything they owned in the fire.
Each family received a check for $500, all donated from community members through a GoFundMe page.
The GoFundMe page is still active for donations and can be found by searching GoFundMe.com for “LO Flint St. Fire Victims.”
With assistance from the Oakland County Investigative Unit, the Lake Orion Fire Department now suspects electrical wiring between the floor and ceiling of the second level of the building to be the cause of the Jan. 28 fire.