Fire heavily damages house on U.S. 231 South

A fire Wednesday morning damaged a Greencastle home. A garage and an addition to the home were left destroyed by the blaze, however the rest of the home was able to be saved. Several animals were lost in the blaze.

A fire destroyed part of a home south of Greencastle Wednesday morning, and the firefighting efforts affected traffic on U.S. 231 for more than an hour.

At 9:56 a.m. the Greencastle Fire Department was dispatched to a fire in an attached garage at 3161 U.S. 231 South. The fire was reported by passersby as well as a neighbor.

Assistant Fire Chief Jeff Mace said the garage was all but lost when responders arrived.

"It really had a good head start on us," Mace said. "When we got there, the garage was just sticks."

Firefighters set to work containing the fire before too much of the house was affected. The original part of the house had an addition to the south with the garage farther south.

While the garage and addition were destroyed, the rest of the house was saved, with some fire damage in the attic and smoke and heat damage throughout.

Mace said there were a number of salvageable items in the home.

The house is occupied by Dan Clodfelter and a female whose name firefighters did not know. The owner of the property is Kevin Strezlec of Henderson, Nev.

The biggest losses for the residents were a number of pets, including a dog and at least three cats.

One cat escaped unharmed when firefighters opened a window for access. They discovered another feline alive behind a cabinet.

The residents left the house at 5 a.m. Tuesday, so no humans were home.

The state fire marshal was called to the scene, and authorities preliminarily believe the blaze to be accidental.

Other departments dispatched to the scene -- chiefly for water -- included Cloverdale Township, Madison Township, Washington Township, Putnamville Correctional Facility, Bainbridge, Floyd Township and Clinton Township.

The mass of fire trucks on U.S. 231 had traffic stopped in both directions until one lane was reopened at 10:55 a.m.

DePauw University photographer Larry Ligget was able to capture an aerial view of the fire on Wednesday morning.

One semi driver who was northbound reported being stopped in traffic for approximately one hour and 15 minutes.

Mace said two-way traffic was restored at 12:35 p.m. and the department cleared the scene at 12:45 p.m.

Operation Life, the Putnam County Sheriff's Department, Duke Energy and Vectren also assisted. Operation Life Executive Director Kraig Kinney was one of the passersby who reported the fire, and he stayed on scene after calling dispatch.

The home is immediately north of Harmony Baptist Church, which is housed in the former Omar Bakery building, also once a onetime home of Taylor Graphics.