Madison Responders Fight Electrical Fire at Pfizer Offices

A smoky electrical fire Wednesday morning at the offices of Pfizer at Giralda Farms drew firefighters from Madison and five other communities.

The responded to an automatic fire alarm at  approximately 10 a.m. with seven firefighters, two engines and one truck to the former Wyeth headquarters at 5 Giralda Farms. The department aldso received a call from personnel in the pharmaceutical producer's mechanical department.

A malfunctioning electrical power unit in Pfizer's data center had caused a smoky condition, said Madison Fire Chief Louis DeRosa, and the smoke had escaped from basement rooms into general office space.

Pfizer employees were evacuated, and due to the size of the building a call for mutual aid brought engines from Florham Park, Cedar Knolls, Whippany, Morris Township and Chatham to the site. A total of 30 firefighters worked at the scene.

"There were no flames, and the incident was confined to a refrigerator-sized cabinet," DeRosa said. "We spent most of the time ventilating acidic, electrical-type smoke from the building."

There were no injuries among Pfizer staff or emergency personnel.

and private security were restricting access to the site, one of a number of corporate buildings at the office park.

Pfizer employees were being allowed back to the site at about 11 a.m., and fire personnel had cleared out as of 11:30 a.m. An ambulance from the was standing by, if needed.

An employee in media relations who answered the phone at Pfizer headquarters in New York said a spokesperson would have a statement on the incident later today.