No one was injured in the blaze, the city's sixth fire since April 29.

The fire broke out at 67-69 Bennett St. at 4:38 p.m. and was under control by 5:16 p.m.

Mary Ellen Casceillo, a neighbor, said she called 911 after seeing smoke when she returned home.

"I heard the smoke detectors going off," she said.

After making the call, Casceillo went to the home and rang doorbells, she said.

By chance, Casceillo said she changed her plans Wednesday, enabling her to spot the fire.

"I wasn't going to go home. I was going to work out," she added.

She noted that Sacred Heart University students had been renting the second-floor apartment for the last two years.

The owner was not at the scene.

But a distraught man was talking to fire officials and using his cell phone after the blaze was under control Wednesday evening. The fire burned the second floor and the attic, said provisional Assistant Fire Chief Bruce Elander.

The fire's cause is under investigation.

Aaron Leo, who covers regional issues, can be reached at 330-6222.