JOHN BURGESON jburgeson@ctpost.com
ConnPost Article: 03/12/2008 03:50:41 PM EDT
BRIDGEPORT — An early-morning fire at a West Side duplex left about 10 people homeless today.
Fire Inspector Charles Dimbo said the blaze started on the front porch of the structure at 114-116 Hanover St., near the corner of Seeley Street and one block south of State Street. The first report of the blaze was called in at about 3:20 a.m.
"The home is fixable," Dimbo said, "but several people were living on both sides are homeless." He added that all of the home's residents apparently found places to live with friends and relatives. He said that there were two or three residents trapped by the fire for a time on the second floor, but managed to escape out a rear door on their own. Fire Department spokesman Michael Giannotti said firefighters' response time was about three minutes,
The house was fixed up a few years back by Habitat for Humanity and it was equipped with working smoke alarms, firefighters at the scene said. They credited the smoke alarms with alerting residents in time to flee safely.
No injuries were reported.
Dimbo said the blaze is being investigated by the state fire marshal's arson investigation unit, but added that this is a routine procedure when the exact cause cannot be immediately determined.
Giannotti said that it's too early to say what caused the fire.
Most of the damage, he said, was confined to the front exterior of the structure, although there was some interior smoke damage. The front windows were broken as well.
Engine 3, Engine 4, Engine 7 and Ladder 11 were dispatched to the scene.