MUSKEGON TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Bob Palmer's wife had just returned home from dropping their grandchild off for school on Thursday morning. Bob, 74 years old, was working on getting an old clock back up and running.
He took a trip out to the back garage when he noticed something was off.
“I smelled something, thought, 'What in the world was that?'” Bob Palmer said.
Something was wrong with their home of 27 years.
“And about that time she come out the back door and she said, 'The car’s on fire,'” Palmer said.
Bob said he had about a "gazillion" smoke detectors in his home that hadn't started going off yet. He was looking around his home for his two dogs.
The dogs ended up being in the back yard.
His home would ultimately go up in flames.
He remained in good spirits on Thursday. He was able to save one of his cars on his property. He and his wife have spare clothing in storage.
“I told the neighbors, 'It’s just a house. What are you going to do?'” Palmer said.
Neighbors and passersby came out in droves to Palmer's front yard. The Palmers live off of Quarterline Road in Muskegon Township, a popular road.
“Within just a few minutes there was probably 12 or 14 people standing in their front yard, all trying to help,” passerby Daniel Puckett said.
Daniel Puckett was running a little behind to work on Thursday. He stopped anyways.
“If I would have went by and thought about it later, I would have been wishing I turned around, late for work or not," Puckett said.
Puckett took things a step further by opening the front door to the home, helping lead Bob's wife down the stairs.
“Had to get the wife down the stairs; she don’t walk too good anymore. She’s had surgeries,” Palmer said.
The Muskegon Township fire inspector spoke with FOX 17 on scene. They thanked the multiple area agencies who responded to the fire alongside them.
“It takes a village, right? We’re all a great big village,” Muskegon Township Fire Inspector Jack Wydeck said.
The fire inspector says this is a good reminder of the importance of working smoke detectors, recommending everyone check their batteries when they turn the clocks back on Nov. 3.
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