Local

Springfield fatal vacant house fire highlights importance of new city measure

Springfield — The Clark County Coroner’s Office is still working to identify a body pulled from a vacant house fire on South Yellow Springs Street early Sunday morning, but the fire shines new light on city legislature passed earlier this year that focuses on the issue of vacant properties within the city.

Fire officials have said previously that many of the fires that the Springfield Fire Rescue Division fights within the course of a calendar year are at vacant properties.

Chief Brian Miller told News Center 7′s Jenna Lawson that the house on South Yellow Springs Street was boarded up when crews got on scene and the front porch was on fire.

WATCH VIDEO: South Yellow Springs Street fatal fire

“They start to pull the boards off and find the fire was actually inside as well,” he said.

But even though the property was at least partially secured, the property was not on the city’s new vacant property registry -- the only contact info was listed on the Clark County Auditor’s site, which only included a name and a Minnesota address.

The registry went into effect in January and stores a reliable phone number and contact with city officials for each vacant property that’s empty for a certain period of time.

That person can then be contacted if there’s a maintenance or nuisance issue with the property or in the event of an emergency.

The registry also serves as a tool to first responders so they can identify any hidden dangers within a property before they go inside, such as holes in the floors.

RELATED: Vacant Property Registry ‘slow to roll out'

“We get that information onto the computers that we carry on the rigs so as we arrive, we understand what the dangers are before we get into the structure,” Chief Miller said.

Even though the house was boarded up, it’s not clear how the person got inside. It’s possible that they were using the vacant house as shelter or for warmth.

“Anytime we can get somebody to take responsibility for maintenance of the building, we have a much lower fire risk,” he said.

The City of Springfield said just over two months ago, it had received 45 registrations for vacant and foreclosed properties. On Monday, it had 111 on file.

Miller said it appears that the fire started in the front room of the house where the body was found -- although a cause hasn’t been determined.

It could be several weeks until the coroner’s office is able to positively identify the body if they have to use DNA or dental records.





Jenna Lawson

Jenna Lawson

I grew up in Springfield and I'm a big fan of all things Springfield, including Schuler's & the Clark County Fair. A career in journalism never really was a serious thought until the end of high school. You just have epiphanies sometimes, and that's the only way I can explain why I got into this line of work – but I'm happier for it!

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