Red Cross helping 15 people displaced by fire

BRIDGEPORT — The American Red Cross is assisting 15 people from five families displaced by a fire that tore through a Huntington Road home early Monday evening.

“We got there pretty quickly,” said Deputy Fire Chief Ronald Rolfe. “Engine 10 and Ladder 10 were returning from a call and they were able to get inside and aggressively fight the fire from the interior.”

The cause of the blaze is still under investigation. It is believed to have begun in a second-floor bedroom.

Nearly 35 firefighters assigned to four ladder trucks, four engine companies and a rescue truck were on the scene commanded by Deputy Chief William Hathaway, Rolfe said. The fire was extinguished in a half hour.

“We were able to keep it from extending beyond the third-floor exterior,” Rolfe said. “The building is unlivable but is repairable.”

Rolfe said people were living on all floors of the two-and-a half story wood frame building. An adjacent home suffered minor damage from the flame’s heat.

Red Cross spokeswoman Ciara DiVita said the organization is helping eight adults and seven children from five families who lived in the home.

DiVita said the Red Cross is providing comfort kits containing personal care items including toothbrushes, deodorant, shaving supplies and other items — all of which are often unable to be gathered by residents fleeing a burning building.

Residents also were given a recovery envelope containing information and tips on cleanup, notification of important contacts, dealing with damaged items and more.