Fire at COGIC Village Apartments

On Sunday morning of March 1, 2015 at 4:30AM, The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety responded to a structure fire at 1954 Territorial in the COGIC Village Apartments.  Upon arrival, Public Safety Officers found that apartments 6 and 7 of building 1954 were fully involved.  Additionally, the heat from building 1954 traveled across the breezeway and caused building 1952 to also ignite into flames.  BHDPS began immediate fire operations to control the blaze.  An evacuation of all residents was conducted for both buildings.  The initial attack crew quickly knocked down the seat of the fire in 1954 as well as preventing further spread of fire into building 1952.  The incident was quickly brought under control.  The fire was restricted in both buildings which prevented the fire to spread to the other adjacent units.  Off duty crews responded to the scene shortly after and continued fighting hotspots  and conducting overhaul in both buildings.  There were no injuries during this incident.

The COGIC Village management staff later arrived on scene and opened the main office to be a safe house for all the affected residents.  The displaced residents were able to be kept warm and dry while the temperature outside was below 20 degrees.

An investigation at the scene determined the fire was caused due to a resident falling asleep while cooking.

All BHDPS units cleared the scene at 8:16AM.

BHDPS would like to acknowledge Berrien County Dispatch for outstanding communication during the incident, and also the America Red Cross for their Emergency Response Team.  Additionally, we want to commend all responding Public Safety Officers who quickly and efficiently brought this incident under control.