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Fire Renders Strawberry Hill Road Home Uninhabitable Late Sunday

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A fire late Sunday rendered a Strawberry Hill Road home uninhabitable, officials say. New Canaan firefighters at 6:24 p.m. were dispatched to the home at 57 Strawberry Hill Road on a report of a blaze in its chimney, Fire Marshal Fred Baker said in a press release. 

There, they found a fire burning in the walls around the chimney and into the attic, Baker said. “The fire appears to have been caused by a breach in the chimney system, allowing hot embers to escape and ignite the structural members,” he said in the release. The homeowners were home at the time and no one was injured, Baker said. They’ve made arrangements to stay with neighbors, he said.

Fred Baker

Three-Alarm Fire on Father Peter’s Lane on Friday 

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Firefighters from New Canaan and surrounding towns responded on Friday afternoon to a three-alarm fire at a Father Peter’s Lane home, officials said. The call of a structure fire at the 2003-built home at 23 Father Peter’s Lane came in at about 3:15 p.m., and arriving units found a fire in the roof of the single-family dwelling, according to Fire Marshal Fred Baker. A second alarm brought mutual aid from companies in Vista and Pound Ridge, N.Y. as well as Norwalk, Stamford and Wilton, Baker said in a press release. As the fire moved toward the attic, a third alarm was called at 3:34 p.m. which brought in additional companies from South Salem, N.Y., Noroton Heights, Georgetown and Ridgefield, Baker said. The fire was declared under control at 5:30 p.m.

No one was injured, though the home’s occupants were in the residence at the time the fire started, Baker said.

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One Injured in Trash Container Fire Downtown

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Firefighters on Tuesday afternoon put out a blaze at a downtown business that injured one person, officials said. At about 1:07 p.m., members of the New Canaan Fire Department responded to the reported structure fire with possible entrapment at 26 Burtis Ave., according to a press release issued by Fire Marshal Fred Baker. There, arriving units found a small fire in a trash container outside the building that had been partially extinguished by the New Canaan Police Department, Baker said. The cause of the fire appears to have been accidental, he said. “Firefighters entered the structure and found one person that had been injured and brought him outside where he was treated by New Canaan Volunteer Ambulance members,” Baker said in the release.

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Fire Marshal: Gas Leak Reported Monday Night on Main Street 

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Firefighters on Monday night responded to a reported gas leak on Main Street, officials say. At about 9:08 p.m. on Aug. 12, members of the New Canaan Fire Department traveled to the area of Down River Road, where officials from the utility company were already on scene working to control the leak, according to Fire Marshal Fred Baker. NCFD members monitored the area and the leak was abated at about 9:45 p.m., he said in a press release. No evacuations were necessary as Eversource stayed on scene to make repairs, Baker said.

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New Canaan Fire Marshal Issues Safety Tips for College-Bound Residents 

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Very soon many young people will be heading off to college – some for the first time. It is a time of big change for first time collegians beginning the next stage in their lives. Fire safety is probably the last thing that families are thinking about as they head off to college.  

However, fire safety is very important—even more so—in dorms or apartment buildings with hundreds of young students. Even more critical is “off-campus” housing that may not be covered by campus housing rules as we were so vividly reminded by the tragic fire at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. a few years ago. The New Canaan Fire Marshal’s Office would like to offer important fire safety tips to help keep these students safe for this new adventure:

Insure that each sleeping room is equipped with operable smoke detectors. 
Candles are a leading cause of campus fires – never burn candles or other open flame devices in dorm rooms or common areas. 
Never use extension cords in place of proper, permanent wiring. 
If given the choice, opt for a dorm/living quarters equipped with automatic fire sprinkler systems. 
Know ALL ways out of your room/dorm and, where each exit discharges.  Take a few minutes to walk the routes to familiarize yourself. 
In High-rise buildings, always have a means of re-entering your apartment if the hall becomes untenable (have room keys ready to go). 
Always follow all directions and guidelines of the school and participate if fire drills as directed. 
Learn your address so if you have to call 911 on your cell phone you can give the proper location. 
Learn the location of fire alarm pull stations and the sound of the alarm system. 
Never cook in your room – cooking related is another common cause of dorm fires. 

The New Canaan Fire Marshal’s Office wishes all young adults heading off to new frontiers a happy and Fire Safe future. If you have questions regarding fire safety please call us at 594-3030.