Crews with the Dowagiac Fire Department had a busy day Monday, as local firefighters were dispatched to four calls throughout the day.

The first call was a request to assist crews with Pride Care Ambulance at Southwestern Michigan College. The second call was a possible brush fire behind a residence on South Lowe Street, which had been extinguished by the time fire units arrived at the scene.

The third call of the day to a reported house fire in the 200 block of James Street. The alarm was received at 5:02 p.m., with the first responding engine arriving on scene at 5:05 p.m.

Crews discovered a working fire in the living room area of the residence. Firefighters were able to make a quick, interior attack on the fire and contain fire damage to the area and room of origin.

The remainder of the single story, single-family dwelling sustained considerable smoke damage.

Two dogs, which were kenneled near the back door inside the home at the time of the fire, were rescued from the house by patrol officers of the Dowagiac Police Department. There were no injuries reported from this incident and fire crews were able to clear the scene at about 6:18 p.m.

An investigation into the call by the Dowagiac Fire Department Fire Investigator revealed that the cause of the fire was accidental, possibly from burning paper products in the home’s fireplace.

Fire crews were assisted on scene by officers of the Dowagiac Police Department and medics from Pride Care Ambulance.

The final call of the day was a reported out of control bonfire on South Paul Street outside city limits. The responding engine crew determined that the fire was attended to and was not posing any immediate hazard.

These four incidents brought the total number of fire department responses to 59 calls for this year.