2 Apartments Damaged in Early Morning Blaze

Firefighters quickly put out an early morning apartment fire Sunday that spread to another apartment and caused an estimated $35,000 damage.

The fire caused no injuries to occupants of the multiunit apartment building at 1672 Marguerite Ave., although a 5-year-old cat was overcome by smoke.

Firefighters tried unsuccessfully to revive the cat, which was owned by two women living in the ground-floor apartment, where the fire started, said Battalion Chief Scott Allan.

Inspectors believe the fire was caused by a lit candle that was left unattended. The two women were awakened about 3:30 a.m. by the sound of glass breaking from the heat, and they tried to put the fire out before being driven back by the intensity of the heat, Allan said.

Residents in the apartment above them, a man and woman, evacuated before firefighters arrived, as did other building occupants.

Most of the first-floor apartment was damaged by the fire and smoke, but damage to the upstairs apartment was confined to one room, Allan said.

The 39 firefighters who battled the blaze had it under control within 15 minutes.