TECUMSEH – Tecumseh and Cook firefighters saved a house on Christmas Day.

Mike and Kay Hartman had just finished dinner with their family when their son went outside and noticed an ash falling down on him. The fireplace inside the three-story home had been used Christmas morning and Hartman surmises that a cinder blew back against the house.

The rural location between Tecumseh and Cook meant both fire departments were dispatched. Early responders reported that the fire was in the attic area and radio traffic said the house could be saved if the fire departments arrived soon.

Climbing ladders and cutting a hole in the roof with saws, firefighters were able to isolate the burning timbers and extinguished the fire. It was contained to roof area.

Hartman said his son caught the fire very early on or it might have been a different scenario.

Hartman: “If it had happened at 3 a.m., I don’t know if you would be talking to me right now. It happened right above our bedroom.”

Hartman’s family has spent 30 Christmas Days at the house and he said Christmas 2020 was about as exciting as any of them.

Hartman: “The fire department did a hell of a job. They got there quick. Nobody was hurt or injured.”

He said he might’ve wished them all merry Christmas under different circumstances, but he didn’t think about it in all the excitement.

Hartman: “I was cussing too much to tell you the truth.”