Total damage estimated at about $167,000
Although the residents safely evacuated the house on Palmwood Drive in the Tamaron community after a fire started on Sept. 18, one firefighter who responded to the incident suffered smoke inhalation, the Sarasota County Fire Department report says.
The unidentified firefighter was treated by a physician and released, the report notes. He was outside the house, handling fire hoses, at the time of exposure to smoke and/or fumes, the report points out.
Just as the initial Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office report indicated, the Fire Department report confirms that the cause of the blaze was an electrical failure or malfunction. The residents were asleep at the time the incident began, the report says.
According to notes included in the Fire Department report, electrical arcing ignited flammable material in a bathroom, though the exact cause of that situation was undetermined, the report adds.
Safeopedia explains, “[E]lectrical arcing … occurs when an electric current flows through the air from one conductive point to another. … Undesired arcing occurs when equipment is damaged in such a way that the current conducted through the equipment becomes uncontrolled, producing an arc fault. This causes the current to ionize the air, creating a conductive pathway through the air to another conductor — either a grounded object or person. As energy travels through the air, the resulting arc flash may produce temperatures of over 10,000 [degrees Fahrenheit,] capable of causing an electrical fire.”
When firefighters arrived, the report says, they initially saw flames coming from the attic.
An employee of Florida Power & Light Co. disconnected the meter after crews began attacking the fire, the report adds.
Damage to the single-story residence was put at $111,249, while the contents lost in the blaze were valued at $55,625, the reports says. Prior to the incident, the report points out, the house was valued at $222,499, and the contents were valued at $111,249.
“There was heavy smoke and water damage throughout the structure,” the report adds, after firefighters put out the blaze.
The living area of the house comprises 1,500 square feet, the report notes. The fire was confined to one half of the residence, the report indicates.
The Sarasota County Property Appraiser’s Office record for the address — 1485 Palmwood Drive — says the residence has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Built in 1979, it also has a screen cage and a swimming pool, the record shows. This year, the market value of the house was put at $306,100.
The Tamaron community is south of Bahia Vista Street and west of McIntosh Road in Sarasota.
Smoke detectors were present in the house, the report points out; they alerted the occupants to the fire.
The alarm came in at 3:22 a.m. on Sept. 18, the report notes. The last firefighting unit did not leave the scene until 5:59 a.m. that day, the report adds.
Altogether, 19 firefighters and nine EMS personnel responded to the incident, the report says, along with five senior officers.