Burnsville apartment fire blamed on short circuit
Investigators say a fire at a Burnsville apartment building was caused by an electrical short circuit.
Doug Nelson of the Burnsville Fire Department says the short in the 240-volt circuit started a fire in the wall of a laundry room that spread to the rest of the building.
Nelson says officials are not exactly sure what caused the short in the wire.
"The building was built in 1969 and has aluminum wiring, which was normal, the wire used back then. But, it's an older building and it's the original wiring, so the wiring is pushing 40 years old."
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Nelson says the fire spread so quickly because the affected wire ran up to the third floor, as did an adjacent dryer vent, which went to the roof.
The Dec. 22 fire burned 64 units, leaving nearly 200 people homeless just before Christmas. Displaced residents were showed with donations, including $1 million from an anonymous donor that was divided among the residents and distributed on Christmas Eve.
No people were injured. More than a dozen pets have been reunited with their owners since the fire.
Nelson says some residents from the first and second floors are now able to go back into their home and collect any belongings that remain.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report)
