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Morning Fire Leaves Ridgefield Family Homeless

RIDGEFIELD, Conn. – A family of three lost their home after an overheated extension cord caused a fire Wednesday morning in a house on Prospect Street in Ridgefield.

The call came in at 7:17 a.m., Ridgefield Fire Chief Heather Burford said, and the fire was extinguished in about 15 minutes. When the department arrived, the fire had begun to spread from the bedroom where it started and had burst a window, she said.

“There was heavy fire damage to second floor, smoke damage to the third and slight water damage to the first floor,” said Burford. The 100-year-old building at 63 Prospect St. is a two-family home. The three-member family lived on the second floor.

The fire marshal ruled it an electrical fire, she said. It started by “improper use of extension cords” that had overheated and caused a nearby bookshelf to catch fire, eventually engulfing the room and much of the second floor, she said.

The family, Burford said, lost everything, including two cats and a rabbit. A third cat was at a veterinarian, fighting for its life. No family members nor firefighters were injured in the blaze.

In total, 40 firefighters, three engines, a ladder truck and an ambulance responded.

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