Augusta firefighters were called to a 37 Chapel St. apartment building early Saturday morning. Four of five units were occupied, and seven residents have been displaced, according to officials. Fire Chief Dave Groder says the fire began on the third floor. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal Buy this Photo
AUGUSTA — No one was injured in an early Saturday morning fire on Chapel Street that displaced seven residents.
Augusta firefighters were called to a 37 Chapel St. apartment building early Saturday morning. Four of five units were occupied, and seven residents have been displaced, according to officials. Fire Chief Dave Groder says the fire began on the third floor. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal Buy this Photo
The call to an apartment at 37 Chapel St. came in around 6:15 a.m., according to city Fire Chief Dave Groder. Upon arrival, Groder said fire was showing from third floor windows, along with heavy smoke.
Groder said members of the police and fire department were able to alert people on the first and second floor of the fire, and no one was injured as a result.
Groder said seven people lived in the building, and four of the five apartment units were occupied. The resident in the third floor apartment where the fire originated was not home at the time of the fire.
Groder said the major concern of the department was that no smoke detectors alerted residents to the fire. He said three of the apartments in the building had smoke detectors removed, which is a problem the department runs into frequently.
“When people were alerted to the fire, it’s because the police and fire department were waking them up,” Groder said. “If there would have been a second floor fire, it would have been a different story for the occupants.”
Groder said the cause of the fire is undetermined as of 1:15 p.m., but the fire was still under investigation. Groder said it is not believed to be suspicious.
Groder said the building could be salvaged, but repair of the third floor would take a long time as it was “gutted” by the fire.
“The third floor will have to be completely redone,” Groder said. “The roof has one hole it in where it burnt off the shingles.”
According to property tax records, the property is owned by Capital Properties LLC.
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