Grosse Pointe Shores public safety chief questions if DTE meter led to house fire | FOX 2 Detroit
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Grosse Pointe Shores public safety chief questions if DTE meter led to house fire

By and David Komer
Published  March 28, 2025 6:36pm EDT
Crime and Public Safety
FOX 2 Detroit

Source of house fire that engulfed Grosse Pointe Shores residence unknown

Grosse Pointe Shores Public Safety Director Ken Werenski said when first responders arrived, DTE was at the scene.

The Brief

    • A morning fire engulfed a residence in Grosse Pointe Shores Friday.
    • The source is under investigation but the Public Safety director believes it may be connected to the DTE meter.
    • DTE said it was alerted to a possible gas leak at the residence but has divulged no details as to how the fire began.

GROSSE POINTE SHORES, Mich. (FOX 2) - Flames could be seen high in the sky Friday morning when a family home in Grosse Pointe Shores was destroyed by fire.

The backstory:

The Greenhill family had smelled gas when they took their son to school Friday morning - so they called DTE Energy.

"They sent someone out - I went to do errands - my husband was at work," said Sarah Greenhills.

Then, she says, her husband got a call from DTE.

"They said there's an emergency - so, he flew home and our house was engulfed," she said.

Grosse Pointe Shores Public Safety Director Ken Werenski said when first responders arrived, DTE was at the scene.

"Upon arrival, we found DTE here," said Werenski. "DTE was working on the meter. We believe there was some connection between that meter and the start of this fire.

"When we got here the second floor was completely engulfed so we started a little bit behind the eight-ball, and we were waiting for the meter - we needed DTE to shut that off before we could actually get inside."

Crews from Grosse Pointe Shores, Grosse Pointe Woods and Grosse Pointe Farms all responded to the blaze.

DTE released a statement about the fire without any detail regarding the source of the fire.

"This morning, DTE was alerted to a potential natural gas leak at a home in Grosse Pointe Shores and immediately sent a crew to investigate. We have turned off service to the property while an investigation continues.

"Safety is DTE’s top priority, and we remind everyone to follow these steps if you smell or suspect a natural gas leak: leave the area, call 911 and then call DTE’s leak hotline at 800-947-5000."

The family says they are grateful no one was hurt - and thankful for the brave firefighters who went inside and saved their pet - a guinea pig named Panda.

"One of the fireman broke through the front window," she said. "They saved the guinea pig."

In addition to Panda and the firefighters, the Greenhill family is thankful for the many people offering help.

"The outpouring from my son's school - our church, our neighborhood," Sarah said. "I have to rely on my faith, and we're just going to take one day at a time - we're strong - we'll get through it, but it's just a lot."

The Source: Sarah Greenhill and the director of Public Safety for Grosse Pointe Shores were the sources for this report.


 

Crime and Public SafetyGrosse Pointe