Duplex destroyed in early morning fire

A house converted into a duplex is a total loss after it burned to the ground.

The building on the 400 block of Walbridge near Maumee Ave. in Toledo caught fire during the 6:00 AM hour Saturday, June 20, 2020.

Firefighters with Toledo Fire and Rescue say the building was not occupied at the time of the fire. Some of the front windows appeared to have been boarded up. However, because of the heavy flames, firefighters were not able to get inside and conduct a full sweep of the building. Instead, they stayed outside to keep everyone safe.

"There was also a partial collapse of the basement from a previous time on the outside of the structure. So the decision by the battalion chief on hand was to remove the firefighters and go defensive," explains Pvt. Sterling Rahe with TFRD.

Still no word on a cause. No one was hurt.