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March 15, 2006

Cranston apartment fire sends 6 to hospitals / Photo

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Furniture from an apartment at Pocasset Village stacked outside following an overnight fire. Cranston fire crews were on the scene this morning.

CRANSTON -- Firefighters are investigating the cause of an overnight fire in the Pocasset Village apartment complex that displaced about 20 people and sent four firefighters, one police officer and one resident to area hospitals, Chief Richard A. Delgado said this morning.

Delgado believes the fire broke out in the lower level of the three-story building, but he said it took about two hours to get the fire under control. That's because the fire traveled quickly to the upper floors, hidden from sight in the utility chases where the electrical wires and plumbing run, he said.

"It was a tough fire to put out because it was concealed," he said.

Firefighters were on scene one minute after a 1:30 a.m. call about the fire at 947 Dyer Ave., an apartment building with about 24 units, he said.

Of the four firefighters transported to Rhode Island Hospital, one remains under observation for smoke inhalation, two have been treated and released after being electrically shocked by some of the wires in the apartment walls and one was treated and released for smoke inhalation, Delgado said.

A Cranston police officer remained in Kent County Hospital and one resident of the apartment building was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, both for smoke inhalation, Delgado said.

The chief declined to release the names of the injured, citing federal health privacy regulations.

An investigative team was on scene digging through the rubble, he said.

The Red Cross was helping those displaced by the fire.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 10:41 AM | Permalink