Sprinkler system helped control fire at Indian Hills Apartments | Local News

MOUNT PLEASANT - A fire at a 20-unit apartment complex Saturday morning left nine families displaced and sent one man to the hospital.

The fire started at about 5:30 a.m. in Indian Hills Apartments, 4824 Indian Hills Drive, said South Shore Fire Department Chief William Bouma.

It's the same building where a large fire took place in 2003, but the damage was not as bad this time because of safety precautions, Bouma said.

The fire Saturday morning entirely gutted the apartment where it started and there was smoke and water damage to some of the other apartments, he said.

Nine of the 20 units were left uninhabitable, said Anne Tabbert, a public support coordinator with the Red Cross, which responded to the scene.

Grace Church, 3626 Highway 31, Caledonia, was prepared in case a shelter was needed, but it wasn't, Tabbert said. People were able to find alternative temporary shelter, she said.

The man in the apartment where it started was taken to the hospital, Bouma said. His condition did not appear life-threatening, Bouma said. It appeared to be caused by unattended cooking, Bouma said, and the man could face charges for neglect.

But the fire could have been worse, Bouma said.

About eight years ago, there was another fire at that same apartment complex, which destroyed the roof of the complex, he said.

Following that fire, a sprinkler and alarm system was installed, Bouma said.

"That basically saved this building and saved lives," said Bouma.

Proposed fire legislation

Bouma said if it wasn't for the installed sprinkler and alarm system the building could have been destroyed.

In the future, Bouma said he is concerned that a proposed state bill could weaken the village's fire building code. Mount Pleasant has stricter fire codes than the state requires, Bouma said, and he doesn't want those to be weakened by a proposed bill that would prohibit local government bodies from creating stricter building codes than the state. The proposal he is referring to is Senate Bill 32, which was proposed by state Sen. Terry Moulton, R-Chippewa Falls.

Legislator willing to talk to fire officials

But Moulton told The Journal Times Saturday, "My legislation is simply an attempt to make a uniform commercial building code." He said local governments that create their own building codes end up putting a "tremendous cost" on builders who have to conform with different regulations for every community.

If firefighters are concerned about his proposal he will sit down with them, he said. His primary goal is for the standard to be the same across the state.

"If we come to an agreement as to what is safe let's make it uniform," said Moulton.