At 0318 hours Sunday morning, the Burlington Fire Department responded to a structure fire at 23 Front Street, across the street from the Burlington Police Station. Police Officers pounded on doors and windows to wake the sleeping occupants. First arriving firefighters found heavy fire blowing out of two windows on the second floor on the North Avenue side of the building, facing the Police Station.
Firefighters rescued one sleeping occupant, while other crews advanced a hose into the burning second floor apartment and knocked down the fire.
The occupants of the apartment where the fire began were awakened by their interconnected smoke alarms, in spite of the fact that both were wearing ear plugs and using their window air conditioners. Had they relied on single station smoke alarms, it is unlikely they would have heard the alarm in time to escape. Interconnected AC/DC smoke alarms are required in apartment buildings in Burlington, but not in all types of occupancies. Residents who still rely on battery operated smoke alarms should consider installing AC/DC interconnected detectors, such as the ones which saved two lives in this fire.
In this case the smoke detectors used ionization technology, and they worked well. The State of Vermont is enacting legislation which will require photoelectric smoke alarms in most new installations.
Neither tenant had renter’s insurance, and both lost a significant portion of their belongings in the fire. The building itself is fully insured, but the landlord’s fire insurance only protects the building. Renters are urged to obtain insurance to insure their property.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Burlington Fire Marshal’s Office.