Tonawanda News — KENMORE — A fire sparked by an overextended power strip was to blame for a bedroom fire in the village that claimed several of the occupant’s pets Friday afternoon.
Kenmore and Kennilworth firefighters were called to the home at 346 Westgate Ave. after a downstairs neighbor smelled smoke and called 911. Kenmore Fire Chief Brendan Kiefer said firefighters arrived at the scene shortly after 6 p.m. to find smoke pouring out of a back upstairs bedroom window.
A ladder truck was deployed to a front window and firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze.
Kiefer said the upstairs tenant had several pets. Lost were a cat, bird and snake. Several mice survived, he said.
The fire is estimated to have caused $30,000 in total damage — $10,000 to property and $20,000 to the structure.
Both the upstairs and downstairs tenants are left temporarily homeless after fire inspectors determined too much damage had been done to safely allow them to return. Kiefer said department personnel contacted the Red Cross to provide assistance to the residents, but no representative had been reached as of Friday evening.
Firefighters had cleared the scene by 7:45 p.m. Ellwood Fire Co. stood by at the Kenmore hall during the incident.
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