Fish Creek Vacation Home Lost to Fire

A Fish Creek home was lost to fire Sunday, Nov. 26. Firefighters from the Gibraltar Fire Department led the battle to put out the blaze and save a garage on the property. Photo by Tad Dukehart.

An unoccupied Fish Creek home burnt nearly to the ground on Sunday evening, but the nearby garage was spared any damage.

The house is located on Sugar Bush Court, a private road at the dead end of Sugar Bush Road. A sign out front says, “Dragonfly Lodge, est. 2018.” It was a vacation home that the Illinois owners had left earlier that day, said Andy Bertges, fire chief of the Gibraltar Fire Department.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time, but he said they don’t suspect any suspicious activity.

“It will be tough to investigate something like that,” he said. “It was extensive damage. It’s tough to investigate with so much damage.”

Neighbors called in the fire at 5:30 pm Sunday, Nov. 26. When the firefighters arrived on the scene, the flames were already through the roof.

“The living room was already gone,” Bertges said. “There were no walls left. I was about 50 feet away, and that was too close. It was just too hot.”

Bertges said that because the fire started at the back of the house, neighbors didn’t see the flames until it became dark. By that time, the fire had gotten the upper hand, further fueled by the home’s cedar siding.

“It was really intense,” Bertges said. “An extraordinary amount of heat.” 

Firefighters set up a ladder truck to gain elevation over the entire single-story structure and hit it over the course of an hour with about 22,000 gallons of water to extinguish the flames. The nearest exposure was a garage on the property that they were able to protect. 

“Our objective was to save the garage and prevent the fire from spreading – which is what we did,” Bertges said. “There was not a lot more we could do.”

Bertges went to a second box alarm, which calls for additional personnel and equipment. It was the last day of the deer-hunting season, reducing the volunteer resources even more than usual.

“The fire department in general needs help, and we’ve been going to box alarms more often because of that,” Bertges said. 

Firefighters responded from Sister Bay/Liberty Grove, Baileys Harbor, Egg Harbor, Jacksonport, Sturgeon Bay and Southern Door. 

“The disadvantage we have in Door County is there is only one way we can draw [other than Sister Bay/Liberty Grove]: south, and bring them up north,” Bertges said. “That’s the greatest disadvantage. Around the state, they can draw from all around.”