By JESSICA SIEFF
Niles Daily Star

Members of the Howard Township Fire Department were somewhat familiar with the location of a fire they responded to Monday.

Fire Chief Ed Leneway said firefighters responded to a call at 817 Leet St. Monday at approximately 2:39 p.m.

At that address the home was already unoccupied. A fire had occurred at the home on New Year’s Eve day, Leneway said, causing heavy damage to the living room and keeping the family in temporary housing at the time of Monday’s fire.

That fire was restricted to a pole barn on the property.

There were several animals housed inside the pole barn, approximately 25 cows and goats, Leneway said.

“Which we were able to get them all out,” he said. One goat, however, perished in the fire that engulfed the center of the barn in flames by the time crews arrived on scene, Leneway said.
Edwardsburg, Niles Township and Niles City firefighters responded to the blaze, which kept crews busy for more than two hours, Leneway said.

“We’re leaning on electricity right now, but it’s still under investigation,” he said regarding the cause of the fire.

It was an electrical fire that started in the living room of the Leet Street home New Year’s Eve. The fire damaged the interior of the home but the family was unhurt.

Following Monday’s fire, Leneway said damage to the pole barn would render the structure a “total loss.”

By 5:53 p.m. Monday, he said crews were able to clear the scene.