A fire that damaged a Plymouth Township home Tuesday night appears to have started in a gas fireplace, Fire Chief Dan Phillips said.

No one was inside the home at the time.

The homeowner found his house on fire in the 4000 block of Ivywood Lane when he came home at 11:39 p.m. Tuesday.

The family room sustained fire damage and other parts of the quad-level house had smoke damage, Phillips said.

Firefighters from the newly reopened Fire Station No. 2 responded in just over six minutes to the fire in the Lake Pointe subdivision.

"It appears to have started in the gas fireplace," Phillips said.

He warned homeowners to never leave a gas fireplace turned on while away. He also urged residents to make sure their smoke detectors are working.

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Smoke detectors, which possibly could have alerted a neighbor, weren't working in the Ivywood Lane home, Phillips said.

"Smoke detectors would have alerted the occupant before he walked in," Phillips said.

Firefighters from Plymouth Township and Northville Township responded to the fire from the station they share near the Lake Pointe subdivision.

dclem@hometownlife.com

Twitter: @CantonObserver

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