KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Kalamazoo has experienced a series of vacant structure fires, with the latest occurring early Tuesday morning on East Water Street. While there were no injuries, there are questions on the cause of the fire and the multiple other vacant fires in the area.
“The first units got on scene, and there were flames on the south side of the building,” said Scott Brooks, fire marshal for Kalamazoo Department of Public safety (KDPS). Brooks added that the building has been vacant for as long as he can remember.
“The owners have tried to fix it up over the years, to try to get different things in there, as far as maybe a bar or restaurant or something. I'm not 100% sure, but nothing that I know of has actually been in that building,” Brooks said.
Brooks told FOX 17 the cause of the fire is undetermined. “The fire is undetermined due to the fact that we can rule out accidental, we can rule out natural, and as far as incendiary, we don't know because we just don't have enough evidence yet,” Brooks explained.
According to the fire marshal, as of September, there have been a total of 56 structure fires reported in the city.
“Of the 56 fires that we had this year, the nine that are considered undetermined would be those vacant structures that we just don’t have enough information yet,” he said.
Right now, the series of vacant fires is not viewed as an uptick and the community should not be worried.
“What we're trying to determine is if there's any correlation, and as of right now, we don't have any correlation,” Brooks told FOX 17.
The Kalamazoo Fire Marshal is actively investigating the fires. Community members with credible information, video or evidence regarding these incidents are encouraged to contact public safety officials or Silent Observer.
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