A Pomfret homeowner apparently was unaware his house was on fire until his alarm company called him early Thursday afternoon.
Pomfret Assistant Fire Chief Edward Bates said the homeowner, Andrew Riley, told him he was elsewhere in the house at 342 Pomfret St. listening to music on an iPod. He didn’t smell smoke or hear a smoke alarm sounding on the second floor of the 21⁄2-story house after a fire broke out in an exercise room on the upper floor.
But, after receiving the call, Riley dashed upstairs and shut a door to the burning room, helping to contain the fire, Bates said.
Bates, who directed the fire-fighting operations, said smoke and flames were coming out the second-floor rear windows when firefighters reached the scene. He said his department attacked the fire with a water and foam solution that quickly extinguished it.
Bates said East Putnam Fire Chief David Cutler, who was working at nearby Pomfret School, went to the scene after the first alarm at 12:21 p.m. and gave Pomfret firefighters on update as they arrived.
“We already knew what we had to do when we got there and were able to make a good stop,” Bates said.
Fire Marshal Adam Scheuritzel said the fire was caused by an electrical malfunction in the exercise room and caused heavy damage to that room. An adjoining office received moderate damage and a hallway was damaged by smoke and fire.
Firefighters from the Putnam, East Putnam, Bungay Fire Brigade (West Woodstock) and Williamsville (Rogers) departments assisted at the scene, while the Dayville and Woodstock departments were put on standby.
Another interview ????
