Horicon man forced to start over after losing home to arson in Dodge County

HORICON, Wis. (CBS 58) — Shelly Held had just settled in for the night when she came across a scanner page alerting her of a fire 10 minutes from her home.

“Right away, my heart sank,” Held told CBS 58’s Ellie Nakamoto-White. “Danny Boy’s smoke room is on fire.”

Her father, Michael Anding, had lived in an apartment above the Irish pub for the last 17 years.

“I’m like, oh my gosh, I gotta make sure dad’s okay,” Held recalled.

On her way over to the area, Held said her dad wasn’t picking up calls.

When she arrived, he had been helped down off the roof by first responders, who had wrapped him in blankets.

“He said he just dozed off and he kind of woke up to smelling smoke,” Held said. “The only way for him to get out of his apartment is down one flight of steps which is into that smoke room, which is where the fire started, so there was virtually no way for him to get out.”

Held said Anding didn’t even have on shoes or a shirt and lost everything inside.

Now Kevin Lentz, 42, of Hustisford, is facing multiple charges including arson, after officials say he became a “disgruntled patron” inside the bar.

“It’s terrible that it’s affected so many people,” Held said. “There’s businesses connected to it, it’s not just dad and it’s not just Danny Boy’s.”

Lentz is currently in custody on a $50,000 dollar cash bond.

Held has set up a GoFundMe for her dad to help him move forward and rebuild.

“We’re just grateful for everybody that has helped out, it’s been an amazing outpour of support for Dad, it’s been great,” Held said.

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