Danbury Electrical Fire Smell Leaves 12 Homeless

The Danbury Fire Department and the American Red Cross responded to a fire on Harding Place Tuesday night that turned out to be a burning electrical wire smell that is now under investigation.

Danbury Fire Marshal James Johnson said officials were unable to get to the bottom of the smell Tuesday night, so the electricity was shut off to the house. The 12 people inside were relocated by the American Red Cross. No fire was found, but some electrical problems were identified.

"We weren't going to leave these people in the house without being able to get to the bottom of the situation," Johnson said. No one is allowed in until the problem is uncovered.

Inside the house, officials found a junction box without a cover with wires hanging out. They found cover plates missing from electrical outlets. Johnson said a variety of owners of the two-story house at 110 Harding Place have probably done their own brand of wiring inside the walls. The property owner, Hector Alvarez said he will have an electrician at the house Wednesday afternoon.

Johnson also told Alvarez to remove the two men living in an illegal apartment in the attic. The fire department gave each apartment on the first and second floor batteries for their smoke detectors.

"They cook. They shut off the alarm. They remove the batteries," Johnson said.

Five people lived on the first floor, five on the second and two in the attic.

Deputy Fire Chief TJ Wiedl said the fire department spent hours on the scene trying to find the source of the burning electrical wiring smell, but couldn't find the problem.

Paul Shipman, chief communications officer with the American Red Cross, said, "preliminary reports indicate 10 to 15 people are affected."