MANCHESTER, NH – Fire crews responded to a 911 call at Ledgewood Apartments, 345 Kennard Road, early Friday for a report of hallways filling with smoke.
Several minutes after the initial call at 8:02 a.m. the crew from Station 10 on Mammoth Road arrived and encountered heavy smoke as they entered the west entrance. The crew advanced with a hose line and encountered a clothes dryer on fire in the common area. Fire was beginning to extend from the dryer to the adjacent walls in the common area.
Crews extinguished the fire and opened up adjacent walls to check for and extinguish extending fire. The smoke from the fire filled the west section of the six-unit apartment complex with smoke. Crews remained on scene to clear smoke so the occupants could re-enter their apartments.
All occupants self-evacuated prior to fire department arrival, several exiting through the smoke.
According to District Chief Mike Gamache, a rapid response by fire crews prevented a large-scale fire that would’ve displaced all and possibly injured six families. A minute or two delay in response would’ve certainly caused a different outcome, Gamache said.
The cause of the fire was a malfunctioning clothes dryer. Estimated damage is $1,500, according to Gamache.
