Crime & Safety

Nighlight Ignites Boy's Bed

A cautionary tale.

Firefighters and the Fire Marshal are calling a New Canaan family lucky today after a boy woke up to find his bed on fire early this morning.

The boy's mattress had been jammed up against a small nightlight which overheated and started the fire around 3:45 a.m. The boy ran out of his second floor bedroom while a smoke detector in the hallway also sounded the alarm. His parents went in to douse the flames and snuffed out the fire with a bathroom trash can. 

Firefighters, called in by police who had received a 911 call from the residence on Shagbark Drive, arrived to find the mattress smoldering on the front lawn.

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While firefighters credited the homeowner with doing most of the work to put out the fire, they caution that mattresses and other furnishings with stuffing are notorious for reigniting even hours later, and dragging the bed through the house was risky. Calling the Fire Department immediately, shutting doors, and getting out of the house, they suggest, is a better tactic. Firefighters knifed and doused the mattress to make sure it was completely out Tuesday morning; they also helped ventilate the house, which had filled with smoke.

The father did suffer some minor burns on his hands, although he refused medical treatment. No one else was hurt.

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Fire Marshal Fred Baker says the incident is a reminder to keep furniture, bedding, and other combustibles away from nightlights and electrical outlets. Baker recommends that battery operated smoke detectors be installed inside every bedroom. 


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