WESTFIELD – There was definitely smoke but the firefighters never found the fire.
School Street was blocked by fire apparatus for less than an hour Thursday morning when firefighters responded to a 10:09 a.m. caller reporting smoke in the cellar and a back bedroom of a building on the street.
Firefighters under the command of Dep. Chief Mark Devine arrived within minutes of the call with three pumper trucks, the aerial platform and an ambulance but reported finding no fire.
Light smoke which reportedly smelled like burning paper was found in the cellar and firefighters ventilated the building to remove it but still no fire was found.
Capt. Eric Bishop reports that, due to the odor of the smoke, trash receptacles where paper might have inadvertently burned were especially checked but no ashes, charring or burn residue were found in any of the trash collection containers nor were any signs of fire found anywhere else.
Firefighters repeatedly used a thermal imaging device to check not only the basement and the units on the floor above it but the adjoining buildings were also inspected for signs of fire without discovering the source of the smoke.
Firefighters left the scene of the call by 10:45 a.m. but Devine lingered for a time to continue the investigation.
A pumper truck returned later so the crew could check again to ensure that no fire had been missed before the firefighters left but no cause for concern was found.
