Crime & Safety

Sunday House Fire Started in Bedroom

A fire on Joper Road started at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, but there were no injuries.

UPDATE: Menomonee Falls Fire Chief Jeffrey Hevey contacted Patch Wednesday morning and said Sunday's house fire on Joper Drive caused $60,000 in damage to the contents and structure of the home. He also confirmed that investigators are focusing on an electric blanket as the cause.

Smoke draped over busy Appleton Avenue Sunday morning when a blaze erupted in a bedroom inside a home at W174N9327 Joper Rd.

According to homeowner’s Mary and Wayne Wendorf, their daughter was in the home reading when the family cat started making a fuss in the bedroom, which alerted her that a fire had started. Their daughter saw the flames in the room and ran across the street and called the fire department at 9:30 a.m. Mary and Wayne were at church at the time of the call, and quickly made the 7-minute drive back to witness their home burning.

Find out what's happening in Menomonee Fallswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Both the Wendorf’s daughter and the cat made it out of the home safely, but by the time first responders arrived at 9:35 a.m., the home was bellowing smoke.

“I just thank God that my daughter is safe,” Wayne Wendorf said. “The house means nothing. This can all be replaced.”

Find out what's happening in Menomonee Fallswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Early accounts from neighbors on the scene cited an electric blanket as the cause of the fire. However, Menomonee Falls Fire Chief Jeffrey Hevey said investigators are still working to determine the cause.

“First responders reported heavy smoke and fire showing from the window, and they laid out an attack line,” Hevey said. “Right now we are investigating it, and the fire was confined to the bedroom of the home.”

Chief said they will confirm the cause of the blaze sometime Sunday afternoon or Monday.


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