Fire in apartment building

Two units in an eight-unit Constantine apartment building were damaged by a fire earlier this week.

Constantine firefighters were called around 5 p.m. Tuesday to the 200 block of Peachtree Street, where the Custer Apartments were ablaze. Investigators said it appears the fire started in a lower unit and spread up and out from its origin.

Though a half dozen units were saved, two of those six sustained heavy smoke and water damage.

A team from the Michigan State Police Fire Investigation Unit is looking into the incident.

Criminal charges being sought

Police are seeking criminal charges against the mother of three children who died after they were killed in a fire at an apartment complex in Kalamazoo last month. Kalamazoo County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Carrie Klein says the request for three counts of second-degree child abuse against 26-year old Jonetta Woods is being reviewed. The charge carries up to 10 years in prison. Three-year-old twins Tevin and Tinya Williams and 1-year-old Tyonna Henderson died after they were trapped in an upstairs apartment in the February 18 blaze at the Interfaith Apartments on the city’s north side. Their 4-year-old sister Drayanna O’Day survived the blaze. Investigators say the four children were left alone at the time. Fire officials have said the blaze was intentionally set. Woods faces a May 14 trial in family court where a jury will determine if she was neglectful when she left the three younger children alone prior to the fire. The jury also will decide in May whether the state should take jurisdiction over Drayanna who was temporarily removed from Woods’ custody the day after the fire.  (MRN)

Man airlifted to hospital

A 23-year-old Elkhart man was airlifted to Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo after he was injured in a one-vehicle crash Sunday in Constantine Township.

Investigators from the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department said Bradley Owen was driving on North River Road when he drove off the roadway near Maple Road and his truck ran into a tree.

Owen had to be extricated by emergency personnel.

The incident occurred shortly before 7 p.m.

Businesses destroyed by fire

A half block of businesses in downtown Colon was destroyed by fire Friday morning.

The blaze was reported around 9:30 a.m. by Curly’s owners Dan and Kathy Earl, who told firefighters it appears the fire started in the kitchen area.

Despite the efforts from nearly a dozen departments, the blaze spread to the east and consumed Five Star Pizza and a Prudential real estate business to the west. Curly’s, owned by the Earls since 1985, was also a total loss.

The Earls said they will meet with their insurance adjuster after an investigation into the cause of the blaze is pinpointed. Dan Earl indicated Curly’s will more than likely eventually be rebuilt.

Meanwhile, fire crews remained on the scene overnight and into the day Saturday to mind potential hot spots.

Sheriff selling 911 mailbox signs

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department is once again selling 9-1-1 mailbox address signs.

The signs are 6-by-17 1/2 inches and are green with reflective, 3-inch numbers on both sides. Numbers may be placed vertically or horizontally.

Cost per sign is $15.50 and proceeds are used by the Explorer Scout Post for uniforms and educational training.

Phone orders may be placed through the sheriff’s department, at 467-9045. Information, such as name, address, phone number and a preference for vertical or horizontal sign will be requested.

Update – Fatal fire in Kalamazoo

A court has removed a 4-year-old girl from the custody of a mother who left her home alone with three younger siblings who died when a fire swept through their low-income apartment in Kalamazoo. Police say that 3-year-old twins Tevin and Ty’nitha Williams and their 1-year-old sister Tyonna Henderson were killed in Monday’s fire. The Michigan Department of Human Services says that Jonetta Woods and Fred Glespie were responsible for the four children but had left them alone. MLive DOT com says a Kalamazoo County family court referee granted the department’s request that it remove Drayanna O’Day from Woods’ custody. The mother is allowed supervised visits. Another hearing is set March 19th. The state agency says Woods also left Drayanna home alone in 2009, when she was one.  (AP)

« Previous Page — Next Page »