Recap on Apartment Fire from Friday Evening

Effingham Fire Department has released additional information on a Friday evening fire that did damage to a multi-unit apartment building on Sugar Mill Court, just off Jaycee Avenue on the city's south end.

Firefighters were called to the scene just after 6:30pm to the two-story, eight-unit apartment building. A full firewall separates the four north and four south apartment units.

The first arriving crew found fire and heavy smoke from the second floor south apartment. Crews went upstairs to the apartment on fire, finding heavy fire coming from the rear of the apartment around an outdoor deck area. The apartment had low heat and heavy smoke conditions. 

As additional crews arrived, Assistant Fire Chief Matt Kulesza ordered the aerial unit to the roof of the structure, another unit to the north gable end for inspection of any extension of the fire. Crews inside were reporting the main fire load was in the attic and rafter area and spreading across the structure.

Kulesza said multiple units and personnel arriving had all tenants and other occupants accounted for within minutes of a primary search of all apartment units.

Interior crews stopped the spread of the fire and contained it to one unit. Three units had minimal smoke and water damage. With additional manpower on scene, Kulesza said they were able to deploy nine salvage covers to all three units with minimal damage to protect personal belongings.

There were 26 firefighters on scene from Effingham, Teutopolis, Shumway and Altamont, with Tri-County from Beecher City and Dieterich covering the Effingham stations in case of another call. There was another fire call during that time that the covering departments handled.

The apartment building fire was determined to be accidental. Kulesza said a discarded cigarette thrown into a plastic bucket containing debris started the fire.

All firefighters cleared the scene by 10pm. 

Kulesza said that three tenants were displaced due to the fire event. He said the fire wall separating the four apartment units worked as designed per the building code.

Damage was estimated at $78,000, along with $16,000 in tenants' contents.

There were no injuries to the tenants or the firefighters.