On Thursday, March 6, some students may have noticed smoke rising in the vicinity of the Harvey Hubbll Gymnasium. This smoke was in fact caused by a fire at 176 Waldemere Avenue. This house was the residence of eight people, including one student here at the University of Bridgeport. The fire was apparently caused by a poorly installed wood stove. This stove was installed before the current owner moved in. It was the first time since they bought the house that it was being used. Building codes being what they were many years ago, the stove was installed in a manner not meeting current building standards. According to one resident, the stove lacked a non-flammable insulator between the wooden loft and the chimney shoot.
The fire was started in the wood stove by Anthony Martinez. Martinez stated that this was the first time he was using the stove, because he did not entirely trust the stove, and had in fact planned to tear it out. The fire, however appeared to go out. “An hour after it went out, I heard some funny noises. It sounded like water,” said Martinez of the fire. He soon saw an orange glow on the snow outside. After running outside, he said he saw an orange flicker, called 911 and had the house evacuated. Fortunately everyone successfully escaped the fire without injury.
Home to Anthony Martinez, his children and a married couple, the damage extent of damage to the house was not quantified. Fortunately for Mr. Martinez, damage to the house was mainly limited to the attic. Also he luckily had home owners insurance. According to Chris Martinez, however the insurance is taking some time to arrive so that it can be used to make much needed repairs. Although it was not though likely to be the case, an arson expert was called in to inspect the site after the fire. The expert agreed with the opinion that the fire was caused by the wood stove.
*Compiled partially from Connecticut Post, “Stove Blamed for Blaze in Home” by Aaron Leo, published March 7, 2003.