UPDATE @ 11:30 a.m.:
New Lebanon fire officials today say an apartment fire originated in the kitchen but they don’t know yet what caused the fire.
UPDATE @ 10:58 a.m.:
A couple living in the apartment complex, Lacie Pauley and Matthew Frizell, said they’ve only been in their new apartment for three weeks. Their apartment now has smoke damage after the unit directly next to theirs had its kitchen catch fire.
The couple was woken up by the fire department beating on the door to get out. Pauley said she grabbed her blanket and a puppy.
“We smelled the smoke but there wasn’t a whole lot of flames,” Pauley said.
Frizell said: “We saw the smoke pouring down the hallway.”
UPDATE @ 8:59 a.m.:
People living in 12 units of an apartment complex on South Clayton Road have been displaced following a fire in the 200 block of that road this morning.
Firefighters said the flames caused heavy smoke and water damage to the majority of the units impacted, but the fire destroyed the unit where the fire originated.
New Lebanon Fire Chief George Markus said the cause of the fire is under investigation, but it appears the fire started in the kitchen.
A firefighter driving by the apartment complex spotted the flames and called in the fire, according to Markus.
There is no sprinkler system in the building because it’s an older building, but it does have smoke detectors, which helped, Markus said.
Everyone, including all pets, was able to make it out of the apartments uninjured.
INITIAL REPORT:
Firefighters have reported a working structure fire in an apartment complex on South Clayton Road in New Lebanon.
According to initial reports, a firefighter requested a full alarm drop after reporting a fire in the 200 block of South Clayton Road.
Firefighters are working to evacuate the surrounding apartments, according to scanner traffic.
We have a crew heading to the scene and we’ll update this page when new information is available.
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