Fire destroys business on Charlevoix Avenue

GROSSE POINTE PARK — The office of a Grosse Pointe Park-based roofing company is a total loss after a fire that started in the building just before 1 a.m. March 8.

Park Public Safety Director Bryan Jarrell said his officers got a call about a fire at the business — Heritage Roofing, at 15121 Charlevoix Ave. — at around 1 a.m. March 8 from the business owner, Ed Brown, who had been inside the building at the time.

The four-alarm blaze triggered a response from neighboring public safety departments in Grosse Pointe City, Grosse Pointe Woods and Grosse Pointe Farms.

Jarrell said there were no injuries.

Officers were able to save O’Flaherty’s Pub, which was directly next door at 15119 Charlevoix.

“It was due to the diligence and persistence of the officers on the scene that the fire did not spread to O’Flaherty’s,” said Jarrell, noting that the two businesses shared the west wall.

Troy Fox, a bartender at O’Flaherty’s, was working that night. He said someone came into the bar at around 12:45 a.m. and told them to call 911. Another patron went outside and confirmed that the building adjacent to them was ablaze, so they made the call.

“They got here really fast,” Fox said of first responders.

He said there were about 10 to 12 people inside O’Flaherty’s at that time. Everyone safely evacuated the bar.

“It just got worse and worse and worse,” Fox said of the blaze. “It was huge. The flames were like 50 feet tall. The firefighters did an amazing job.”

So amazing, in fact, that O’Flaherty’s was preparing to reopen to customers later on March 8.

One of the challenges officers faced was the fact that the roofing business was packed with materials that fed the fire. Jarrell said there were also propane tanks inside, but those didn’t explode.

“The building was full of propane cylinders, tires, boxes, other flammables and other combustibles,” Jarrell said.

In addition, “relatively quickly (into starting to fight the fire), the roof collapsed,” Jarrell added.

Jarrell said officers didn’t clear the scene until approximately 2:30 p.m. March 8.

Despite their proximity to the fire, no nearby homes needed to be evacuated, Jarrell said. He said they had two ladder trucks on the scene because, after the roof collapsed, officers needed to fight the blaze from above as well as on the ground. He praised the work officers did to contain a fire that could have easily destroyed additional buildings or homes.

“I just thought they worked so hard and competently that they were able to keep it from spreading to other structures,” Jarrell said. “It’s just a testament to their training. And, the fact we all work so well together is really good.”

The Michigan State Police Arson Squad was called in to investigate the cause of the fire and had a K-9 on the scene the afternoon of March 8. At press time, the reason for the fire had not been determined.

A webpage for Heritage Roofing says that owner Ed Brown established the business in 1974.