(The following story by Molly Montag appeared on the Times Herald website on December 19.)
PORT HURON TWP., Mich. — Township officials said they plan to take action against CN Railway after township firefighters and four other departments spent thousands of dollars and more than nine hours Tuesday fighting another fire on the company’s abandoned property.
A CN Railway security officer who patrols the site on Minnie Street near 27th Street reported the fire at 2:32 a.m. to township firefighters.
Fire Sgt. Ronda McLeod said flames had overtaken the front of the building when firefighters first arrived at the scene. The township requested mutual aid from Kimball Township, Fort Gratiot, Clyde Township and Port Huron. The scene was cleared about noon.
It’s the second time this year an abandoned building on the site has been destroyed by fire. The remnants of an Aug. 23 fire that destroyed a building north of the one that burned Tuesday still are visible.
Township Supervisor D. Scott Beedon said in coming days officials will begin issuing blight citations to the Canadian rail company and will take it to court if the site is not cleaned up. Such measures have not been taken, Beedon said, because he thought a clean-up agreement had been reached with company.
Tuesday’s fire proved at least a few things for officials.
“CN has not realized the severity of that site, and I believe that’s a tragedy waiting to happen,” Beedon said.
He and other officials estimated the township spent $13,000 fighting the August blaze and between $25,000 and $30,000 on the Tuesday fire. Those sums, which include only demolition costs and pay to firefighters, comes directly from the township’s general fund.
When contacted Tuesday, CN spokesman Jim Kvedaras said he wasn’t aware that rubble from the Aug. 23 fire had not been removed. He said he was unable to say how the most recent fire will affect plans for the site, which it has been trying to sell, because “we’re just kind of reacting to (Tuesday’s) fire out there now.”
Disappointment
Beedon, who previously expressed optimism that township and CN officials would be able to avoid conflict, said he was disappointed Tuesday to find that contractors hired by the company to clean up the August fire left before finishing the job.
If the township’s blight ordinance is enforced, it could get expensive for CN. After a verbal warning is issued, a blight citation is punishable by a $50 fine. Subsequent citations are punishable by $500 each and can be issued daily.
If CN takes no action within 30 days, Beedon said he believes the township board is prepared to take legal action.
“They’ve got to respond to us, and they can’t ignore it, and they can’t dog-and-pony show this thing,” Beedon said. “They brought some equipment in, they made an attempt, and now they’re gone.”
Evelyn David, a spokeswoman with the Michigan Townships Association, said she is unaware of any other townships that have taken a large company such as CN to court because of blight.
Kvedaras, CN’s spokesman, said the site will be secured, and the rest of the rubble will be dealt with. When asked what “secured” meant, Kvedaras said he didn’t have an answer. When asked in November about the rubble left from the Aug. 23 fire, Kvedaras said the buildings would be secured so no one else could enter them, and the rubble would be cleared away.
Tied up
Port Huron Township fire Chief Craig Miller said Tuesday’s fire was started by a person but doesn’t know if it was intentional or accidental.
In the wake of the Aug. 23 fire, area residents speculated it could have been caused by a vagrant or homeless person seeking shelter in the building. Miller wouldn’t comment about who could have started Tuesday’s fire, but said neighbors were able to provide information to the CN security officer who is conducting an investigation.
Miller said Tuesday’s blaze left township firefighters unable to immediately respond to other calls. While they were at the fire, some had to be called off to attend to a medical emergency and Fort Gratiot firefighters had to take a second call.
“We’re out fighting basically an abandoned building that has no value, (and) the owners don’t want to act on it and it takes our people away from other emergencies,” Miller said.