[Updated] Three people were inside a Rosemary Court home that caught fire just before 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, possibly as a result of a cellphone charging on a bed.
Three occupants escaped an overnight fire at 8 Rosemary Court in West Hartford. Photo credit: Ronni Newton
By Ronni Newton
Three occupants were able to escape an overnight fire at a single-family home on Rosemary Court in West Hartford, with one of the residents and two firefighters sustaining only minor injuries.
According to West Hartford Fire Department Assistant Chief Richard Winn, the call came in at 1:28 a.m. Tuesday about a fire at 8 Rosemary Court.
When units arrived, they found flames coming out of a second floor window.
“A resident was screaming about ‘my baby,'” Winn said. The “baby” turned out to be a large cat, which firefighters were successfully able to rescue from the home and is now being cared for by neighbors.
Winn said that there were three people inside the house at the time the fire started, including a 9-year-old boy who woke his grandmother up to alert her about the fire. The boy’s aunt was also in the home.
All three escaped, but one resident, Lillia Burnett, was transported to an area hospital. She was quickly released after being evaluated.
The fire, which was mostly contained to a second-floor bedroom, was knocked down in about 20 minutes, officials said. The homes in the neighborhood, a development located just off South Quaker Lane, are close together and the roads are narrow, but despite more than a foot of snow on the ground, firefighters were able to get their quint into the driveway and use the front door as well as the ladder, Winn said.
Two firefighters sustained minor injuries, Winn said. One slipped and fell on the ice and the other received minor burns to the hair and ear. Both firefighters were treated on the scene.
Assistant Chief Michael Sinsigalli, who serves as the fire marshal, said that the property owner said the fire originated with a cellphone that was on the bed where she and her grandson were sleeping.
According to Sinsigalli, when the resident attempted to extinguish the fire the phone fell onto the floor and under the bed, igniting the underside of the box spring and mattress. The fire quickly engulfed the bedroom.
The fire remains under investigation.
The house is not currently inhabitable, but no information was made available about accommodations for the residents, although Winn said they reportedly have other family members who live down the street.
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Cleanup is beginning after an overnight fire at 8 Rosemary Court in West Hartford. Photo credit: Ronni Newton
