UPDATE: American Red Cross Assisting 2 Branford Families After a Fire

Update:

The American Red Cross is helping two families – three adults – after a fire yesterday on Indian Neck Avenue, Branford.

The Red Cross provided assistance to meet the families’ immediate needs. Responders included: Lionel Dunlap and Missy Lundeen.

The Red Cross is also providing comfort kits containing personal care items such as toothbrushes, deodorant; shaving supplies and other items a resident might not have been able to gather in the rush to escape the fire. Also provided was an envelope of information helpful to families recovering from a fire, including tips on cleanup; notification of important contacts; dealing with damaged items and more.

REDUCE RISKS FROM HOME FIRES:

The American Red Cross has launched a campaign to reduce deaths and injuries caused by home fires by 25% in five years. There are two actions you can take to substantially reduce the risk of death or injury in a home fire.

FREE smoke alarms available: Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in a fire in half. Install smoke alarms on every level of your home inside bedrooms and sleeping areas. The Red Cross offers a program to install FREE smoke alarms in your home and provide additional fire safety information. Visit http://www.redcross.org/ct/schedule-a-visit to request a safety visit, or call 1-877-287-3327 and press option 1.

Practice fire drills at home: Fire experts agree that you may have as little as 2 minutes to escape a burning home before it’s too late to get out. Use our Home Fire Escape Plan worksheet to plan your evacuation and practice it at least twice a year as a family. Learn more about the Red Cross home fire prevention campaign.

Original post: The Branford Fire Department responded to a multi-family house at 10:39 a.m. on Indian Neck Road for a reported building fire.

All five occupants of the four apartments managed to escape harm unfortunately however, a dog and cat perished, the fire department said.

Branford was assisted by Guilford Fire Department at the scene and North Branford Fire Department who provided cover.

The 2nd alarm fire caused extensive damage displacing all of the residents who are being assisted by the American Red Cross.

No firefighter injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is still being investigated, the Fire Department said.

Photo credit: John Planas