The Yankee SpringsTownship/Wayland Fire Department was called at 6:54 a.m. Wednesday to a structure fire at the end of Island Drive in Yankee Springs Township. Fighting a well-involved house fire with sustained winds of 30-40 miles an hour and gusts from 50 to 65 mile an hour challenged the firefighters, said Wayland Deputy Chief Dan Miller.

“The firefighters did a great job, even with the wind,” he said. “Everything fell into place, as its supposed to.”

The residence, owned by Gary and Linda Meyers, was deemed a total loss, with a preliminary estimate of “well over” $150,000 in house and contents. “No one was hurt, the owners were out of state and everybody came home safe,” he said. With automatic response to structure fires, Orangeville Fire Department was on its way and Miller called Hastings department for water while enroute.

In addition to Orangeville, Yankee Springs/Wayland and Hastings, other fire departments were involved; Hopkins was called for more air packs and to cover Wayland while they were out of the station and Martin sent extra firefighters, Miller said. Wayland Area Emergency Medical Service ambulance checked firefighters vital signs on a regular schedule, according to protocols. Two neighboring homes may have some smoke damage because of the strong winds, but no fire involvement.

The firefighters cleared from the Meyers fire at 10:45 a.m. The rest of the day and evening was spent answering calls related to the winds, with the crew getting back to the station at 6 p.m.

“Wednesday was a struggle with the wind, but it’s calm this morning,” he said,