At 9 a.m. Friday, Kent Fire Department emergency units responded to a report of an apartment fire at the Hidden Ridge Apartments on Kent’s East Hill. The caller told dispatchers there was smoke coming from a bedroom window on the first floor of the two-story building and that there was no answer when neighbors knocked at the front door.
First-arriving fire department units found smoke from the bedroom window. Kent Firefighters gained entry to the apartment with a key provided by the apartment manager and quickly extinguished a small, smoky fire in the corner of the bedroom.
Firefighters confirmed no one was at home at the time. Damage to the apartment was limited to the bedroom with light smoke throughout the unit.
The cause of the fire was determined to be clothing piled against the bedroom baseboard heater.
The fire has displaced a family of two adults and five children. The apartment manager has provided another apartment for the family. No injuries to any residents of the complex or firefighters were reported.
Safety tip from the Kent Fire Department: With the weather getting colder and heaters coming on, check to ensure that clothing or furniture is not up against baseboard heater units. Even on the low setting these units can get hot enough to ignite combustible materials.
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