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'Squatter' Injured After Jumping From Window To Escape Fire

DETROIT (WWJ) - A man who was "squatting" at a vacant house on Detroit's east side was injured after jumping from a window to escape a fire.

The incident happened early Wednesday morning at an abandoned home on McDougall Street at East Davison Street.

Fire battalion chief Michael Jefferson said it appears the man was living in the home.

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(Credit: Mike Campbell/WWJ Newsradio 950)

"There was a squatter in the house who jumped out the second flood window and he was transported to the hospital by EMS," Jefferson told WWJ's Mike Campbell. "He was conscious and talking."

It's not yet clear how the fire started, but the home appears to be a total loss. It's the latest home in the neighborhood to burn to the ground.

"You're looking at it like I am. You know? It's what we do," Jefferson said about the number of burned homes. "We can't control what the city does as far as the dilapidated houses and whatever, all we can do is do our job when we're called to do it."

An investigation is ongoing.

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(Credit: Mike Campbell/WWJ Newsradio 950)
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