North Webster Firefighters Scott Gerke, Jake Baker, Ben Rhodes and Deputy Chief Josh Gunkel head out to a remote fire.
(Photo by Deb Patterson)

The Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department reports Det. Jon Tyler responded to a report of a fire at 4:02 a.m. Saturday. Utilizing a lake patrol boat, at 4:37 a.m. he located a “building” that was on fire and completely destroyed, but with several hot spots.

The fire was on Ball Nature Preserve, owned by Young Men’s Christian Association of Muncie. According to an official at the Muncie YMCA it was a covered pavilion.

North Webster Fire Chief Jeremy Likens reported firefighters responded with their fire boat, launched from EMS T4 Lane, at a private boat launch. The only access to the site was by boat.

The Ball Wetlands/Edmund and Virginia Ball Nature Preserve is a peninsula that jets out in what some describe as separating Tippy Lake and James Lake.
(Photo provided)

Firefighters reported the 12-foot by 12-foot pavilion was approximately 200 yards off shore in a woods. The fire was extinguished at 5:50 a.m.

A portable pump from the boat was used to draft water from the lake to extinguish the fire.

The sheriff’s department was contacted later that day by individuals who had heard of the fire. They told authorities they had started a camp fire previously in the evening and believed it had been extinguished.

It is currently believed the fire was accidental, as the camp fire may have re-ignited, but remains under investigation.