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Fire under control at Oakland Hills Country Club as scope of damage comes into view
Founded in 1916, the Oakland Hills Country Club has played a considerable role in the history of golf in the United States. The South Course has hosted 17 Major Championships including six U.S. Opens and three PGA Championships
BLOOMFIELD TWP., Mich. (FOX 2) - A devastating fire broke out Thursday morning at historic Oakland Hills Country Club the flames consuming a significant portion of the free-standing clubhouse.
Through snow ice and very cold conditions, at least a dozen agencies worked to contain the blaze all day and through the night. Bloomfield Township Fire marshal Peter Vlahos said there are still hot spots late Friday afternoon
"It’s under control," he said. "We do have a tower ... and we have an area in the back that is still kind of pancaked right there. So we do have recurring fires, small fires."
The fire Marshall expects crews will be on scene throughout the evening and into Saturday and maybe longer.
The fire chief said the center of the building took the brunt of the damage and that it could be a total loss, but it is unclear. Firefighters were trying to keep the fire from spreading to the flanks of the building.
"I'm not going to say it is a total loss, that is not up to me, it is up to the insurance companies," Vlahos said. "What we have now is a lot of damage in the rear of that building. It did start in the middle and moved to both sides."
The cause of the fire is unknown right now as the investigation continues.
Founded in 1916, the Oakland Hills Country Club has played a considerable role in the history of golf in the United States. The South Course has hosted 17 Major Championships including six U.S. Opens and three PGA Championships
With Thursday's devastating fire out, the club is already looking to the future.
"We announced a couple of weeks ago we’re going to be hosting two US woman’ opens in the not so distant future," said Rick Palmer, Oakland Hills Country Club. "We believe that will be the start of other things to come."
After the fire caused tremendous damage to one of the largest wood-frame structures in our state, Palmer, the President of Oakland Hills Country Club told us, they’re still hopeful more golf history will be made.
Club members and golf aficionados alike can take comfort in the many valuables that were saved.
"Certainly we’ve lost items, but we were able to work with the fire department and they allowed our staff to stand at the front of the building as they ran out with things we were able to retrieve them," said Christine Pooler.
The club told FOX 2 Friday they’ve been at an off-site strategy meeting and could not provide an update. But Thursday they said they had plans to use other buildings for scheduled events.