by Judy Reed

A Cedar Springs woman was out hunting for pokemon in the wee hours of Friday morning when she spotted a trailer on fire as she returned home.

Kelli Destrampe reported the fire at 401 Sarah Street, in Cedar Springs Mobile Estates, right around 2:30 a.m. Both Cedar Springs and Sand Lake Fire Departments responded to the scene. A Kent County Sheriff deputy and Rockford Ambulance also responded.

“The came in as a report of a trailer fire well involved, and it was unknown if anyone was inside,” explained Cedar Springs Fire Chief Marty Fraser. He said they had the fire knocked down in the first 10-15 minutes.

There were three other mobile homes surrounding the burning one—one on each side and one behind it. “We did have three exposures, and it melted some of their siding. It could have been such a mess if we didn’t have it knocked down quickly. There could have been three other trailers burning,” remarked Fraser. 

Fraser said the park owned the trailer and they were getting ready to remove it. No one was living there and there were no utilities hooked up, so the cause was not electrical.

Fraser is ruling the fire as “suspicious but undetermined.”

Cedar Springs Mobile Estates is offering a $5,000 reward for the arrest, testimony against, and conviction of the perpetrators responsible for the suspicious fire. If you have any kind of information, please contact the CSME Office at (616) 696-0820 or the Kent County Sheriff’s Office at (616) 632-6100.

The Cedar Springs Fire Department recently congratulated four members on their 20 years of service to the Fire Department and community.

“These four members have donated, served, and given up an unknown number of hours away from their families and activities for 20-plus years,” said Fire Chief Marty Fraser. “This includes being called away from family gatherings; Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners; many meals; and family time to proudly serve the needs of our community.”

If you see these four firefighters out and about, please take a minute to say thanks to Philip Andrews, David Barnes, Shawn Holtrop, and Brien Velting. Thank you guys for all you have done!

When a family member is suffering a medical emergency, how fast rescue personnel arrive on the scene can mean the difference between life and death. “Every minute counts,” said Cedar Springs Fire Chief Marty Fraser.

But the exact house can be hard to find when the address is not posted on the outside of the home, or the numerals are too small to be read. So, at the request of police and fire personnel who require visible posted addresses for emergency response, the City of Cedar Springs has adopted a new address policy to formalize the size, contrast, and placement of addresses for every home and business in Cedar Springs.

Under the new policy, single-family residences must have their address legible and visible from the street, using Arabic numerals or letters, and no less than four inches in height and no less than .5 inch wide.

Multi-family homes must comply in the same way, but also have apartment or suite numbers on all entrance doors.

There are also specific requirements for businesses. You can see all requirements in the policy at https://cityofcedarsprings.org/2018/08/23/address-policy/.

All commercial, industrial and rental residential addresses must comply with the policy by October 9. Single family residential must comply with the policy by December 9.

Wind caused this fire to burn out of control last week. Post photos by J. Reed.

By Judy Reed

Dry and windy conditions caused a brush fire to spread out of control behind a home in Nelson Township last week. 

Cedar Springs Fire was called to the scene behind a home on 18 Mile, just to the east of Hillcrest Community Church, on Friday, March 23. 

According to Fire Chief Marty Fraser, when the fire began to spread, the homeowner attempted to put it out but could not get it under control. Approximately two acres was burned. 

The fire department got it knocked downand then went over the hot spots.

The Michigan DNR had a burning ban out for northern Michigan, and most of the fire departments in the lower peninsula also had a burning ban on for the dry, windy conditions. Anyone in the lower peninsula who wants to burn brush needs to call their local fire department to get a burn permit prior to burning.

The five flashlights seen here will help firefighters see in smoky areas. Courtey photo.

Memorial contributions to the family of the late Robert Townes have made it possible for the Cedar Springs Fire Department to purchase something to help them see in smoky areas.

With the donations, the fire department was able to purchase a set of handheld rechargeable LED flashlights. The fire department has been looking at new and innovative equipment that will update and replace some of the equipment they have been using for many years. 

“Mr. Townes (Bob) was a member of the fire department for 51-plus years,” said Fire Chief Marty Fraser. “Mr. Townes will be greatly missed.”

The Cedar Springs Fire Department expressed their heartfelt thanks to the Townes family and friends for their donations on behalf of Mr. Townes.

The current Cedar Springs Fire Station, at W. Maple and Second Street. Photo by J. Reed.

By Judy Reed

With all the talk of the opening of the new library at N. Main and W. Maple Streets, the question arises: what is happening with the Cedar Springs Fire barn? Will it stay where it is, or will it be relocated?

Chances are, it will be relocated close to the very same area it started in.

“We are strongly looking at the area behind the old library building (between Elm and Cherry fronting on 2^nd) as the location,” said Cedar Springs City Manager Mike Womack. “We are trying to figure out what the fire department’s future needs will be and have put together a couple of potential renderings about what the building will look like. Once we are satisfied with the basic design of the building we will take it to an architect and get a cost estimate.”

According to The Cedar Springs Story, by Sue Harrison and Donna DeJonge, a new fire station was built at the corner of Cherry and Second Street in 1874. When the book was published in 1976, the Fire Department also had a station at that same location, 43 W. Cherry. It later became the home of the current Cedar Springs Library.

According to Fire Chief Marty Fraser, they shared the building for a time with the Cedar Springs Library. The Fire Station had the west part of the building, and the library had the east side. Then a new fire station was built on W. Maple in the late 70s or early 80s. That’s where the fire department is today.

Come May, when the new library opens at Main and W. Maple, the fire department and library will once again be sharing the same property, although not the same building. That is, until a new fire station is built.

The new location would be just behind the old library, in the area where the Cedar Springs Community building used to stand.

Womack said that another idea was to share a building complex with the county, on property they own on 17 Mile, behind Taco Bell, but the timing wasn’t right.

“That project is 3-5 years in the future and we want to break ground in the next 1-2 years,” he explained.

Stay tuned! The Post will pass along more info on the building of the new fire barn as we get it.

Cedar Springs Firefighters show off their new LUCAS automatic chest compression device. Courtesy photo.

By Judy Reed

People living in Cedar Springs who suffer sudden cardiac arrest now have a better chance of survival, thanks to new equipment recently purchased by the Cedar Springs Fire Department.

The CS Fire Department held a spaghetti dinner fundraiser on March 8 to raise money for the LUCAS automatic chest compression device, which would help them give CPR to heart attack victims. The device was $15,000.

“This piece of equipment is costly but well worth the price,” noted Fire Chief Marty Fraser.

March 8 was the Wednesday evening that high winds blew through the area, and many areas were without power. That translated to people going out to dinner, including the fundraising spaghetti dinner at Big Boy.

“We had a large crowd and through the generosity of everyone, raised a sizable amount of money,” said Fraser. “We also had several anonymous donors contribute to our cause.”

The Fire Department made enough to purchase the equipment, and they put it into service on Tuesday evening, March 21. “I and the staff at the Fire Department are very grateful to the community and the surrounding areas for their generosity in making this a very successful project,” remarked Fraser.

Spaghetti fundraiser March 8 for lifesaving equipment

By Judy Reed

In 2016, there were more than 350,000 instances of sudden cardiac arrest (outside of hospitals), according to the American Heart Association. About 46 percent had CPR performed on them by a bystander, and only 12 percent survived. That might not sound like a high number, but it’s a number that’s climbed over the last several years, thanks to new lifesaving equipment available to paramedics that will automatically do chest compressions. And Cedar Springs Fire and Rescue is trying to raise money to buy the equipment to treat people locally.

According to Cedar Springs Fire Chief Marty Fraser, the department responded to 11 heart attacks in 2016, and two since the first of the year. One of the two did not survive.

Fraser said that each call averages 8 people per call, averaging 60-70 minutes each, and they must do CPR manually. “60-70 minutes is a long time,” he said, adding that manual CPR calls for 120 compressions a minute. He also noted that daytime staffing can also be difficult, with firefighters working during the day.

With an automatic chest compression system, they could do the call with only three people. And the device would keep the patient’s blood circulating, delivering oxygen to organs while waiting for the ambulance to arrive to transport the patient to the hospital.

Algoma Fire and Kent City Fire both have one of these systems, and Algoma brought it to the Cedar Springs City Council to show them how it would help Cedar Springs. The Council then challenged Chief Fraser to do some fundraising for the $15,000 piece of equipment. “We have some money in next year’s budget, but would like to supplement that,” said Fraser.

He also said that the need for the equipment would only increase, with two senior citizens opening in Cedar Springs in the near future.

Their first fundraising event will be a spaghetti dinner on Wednesday, March 8, from 5-8 p.m. at Cedar Springs Big Boy, 13961 White Creek Ave. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for children ages 12 and under. Tickets may be purchased from any firefighter or medic. You may also purchase at the door. Call 696-1221 to order tickets. Leave a voicemail, the station will return your call.

The house at 157 N. Main, just north of Cedar Creek (on the west side of the street) was the site of fire on January 13. Post photo by J. Reed.

The house at 157 N. Main was torn down on January 19, as scheduled. Photo by M. Fraser

By Judy Reed

A house that was scheduled to be demolished was the site of a structure fire on Wednesday, January 13.

According to Cedar Springs Fire Chief Marty Fraser, the call came in about 8:28 p.m. on a structure fire at 157 N. Main, which is just north of Cedar Creek. When they arrived, flames were seen on the second story. Fraser said they cut in around the chimney on the south side to go in and stop the fire, which burned through the wall and floor.

The building, which was purchased by the Community Building Development Team in October, was scheduled to be torn down, and all utilities had been turned off.

A reward is being offered for information related to the fire at 157 N. Main. Post photo by J. Reed.

“We can rule out natural gas or electric as being a cause,” remarked Fraser.

Both Fraser and CBDT president Kurt Mabie said that there was evidence that people had been in the building over the last couple of weeks. “We secured it but they still got back in,” said Mabie.

A K9 searched the premises but found no traces of accelerant, and the Fire Marshal deemed the fire suspicious but undetermined. If you have any information about the recent fire, they are now offering up to a $5,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of anyone on arson-related charges. You can call the Kent County Sheriff Department at 616-632-6015 or Arson Control at 1-800-44-ARSON (27766).

The house was torn down on Tuesday, January 19. Mabie said they weren’t originally looking to purchase the house, but when it was offered, he thought it would be a good deal for the people of the community. The property is just north of Cedar Creek, and runs back to the White Pine Trail, to other property the team purchased on Pine Street. Mabie said they have no immediate plans for the property, but it will enhance the beauty and park-like atmosphere they are creating along Cedar Creek, which will eventually have a boardwalk and bridge, along with a new library just south of the Creek, an ampitheatre west of the library, and a Community building on the old Johnson Lumber property across the White Pine Trail.

The bridal party of Esther Couturier poses with the Cedar Springs Fire Department, who came and saved the day for Esther and her groom. Photo by M. Ellick.

Some unexpected, but not unwelcome, guests turned up at the wedding of a local graduate last weekend.

Esther Couturier, a native of Cedar Springs and a former Red Flannel court member, was marrying her fiancée from Zimbabwe at Pine Lake Campground last weekend, January 16. She had met him on a mission trip to Zimbabwe and many of his family had traveled here for the ceremony.

Just before the ceremony was to begin, the Master of Ceremonies lit the fire in the fireplace, but the vent was not completely open, and smoke filled the room, necessitating a visit from the Cedar Springs Fire Department.

According to Cedar Springs Fire Chief Marty Fraser, it first came across dispatch as a fire alarm, then that there was smoke in the building. He said they took two engines, and ventilated the building with fans.

The bridal party joked around with the firefighters and had the photo above taken to commemorate the unusual event.

The wedding then went on as planned.

By Fire Chief Marty Fraser

The members of the Cedar Springs Fire Department would like to remind the citizens of the community that when approaching an incident scene, whether fire or accident, to please use caution and pay attention to the area.

This department recently had a structure fire and a citizen drove around fire apparatus that was blocking the street, and ran over a section of fire hose. Not only could this have caused damage to the hose, but could possibly endanger firefighters actively fighting fires. If, in this case, the hose would have ruptured, causing failure, the firefighters on the nozzle could have lost water in their suppression efforts.

Please be observant as to the situation and DO NOT drive through an area shut down to normal traffic flow. The firefighters of all communities thank you for being observant and cautious.