ORFORDVILLE — An Orfordville family is homeless today after fire ripped through their three-vehicle attached garage and two-story house at 1629 S. Coon Island Road.
Firefighters from seven departments initially were called to the scene in Plymouth Township about two miles north of Orfordville. Four more fire departments were called later to assist.
"The garage was completely engulfed with flames and starting to spread. By the time we got water up to it, the fire had broke through the roof of the house,'' said Chad Cleasby, assistant chief at the Orfordville Fire Department.
Firefighters determined the fire started in the mudroom between the garage and house, but the cause remains undetermined.
"It was accidental, not suspicious,'' said Dan Jacobs, Footville fire chief.
In addition to the Orfordville and Footville Fire Departments, firefighters from Janesville, Evansville, Beloit, Brooklyn, Brodhead, town Turtle, town of Beloit, Edgerton and Harlem-Roscoe, Ill., rotated to keep warm while battling the blaze.
"We needed the manpower due to the severity of the cold,'' Cleasby said.
"It was a bear," Jacobs said.
Tankers had difficulty getting up the snow-packed driveway, hydrant valves froze and the ground was very slippery, Jacobs said.
The Rock County Highway Department was called to salt and sand the area of the fire scene. The American Red Cross responded, too.
One Footville firefighter suffered a burn to the back of his neck after a hot ember fell between his collar and hood, but no medical attention was needed, Jacobs said.
Homeowner Tracy Breneman, his spouse, two daughters and pets, were safely evacuated from the home and took refuge with a neighbor, Cleasby said.
Two rooms and some of the home's contents might be salvageable, but Cleasby said he doubts if the family will be able to rebuild. He declined to give a damage estimate.
The garage, house and its contents were insured for $375,000, fire officials were told.
Destroyed in the garage were a 2008 Subaru Outback, 2002 Nissan Altima, 2002 Harley-Davidson motorcycle and a 2007 Honda motorcycle.