Tupper Lake home damaged by fire

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November 22, 2009

By DAN HEATH The Press Republican Sun Nov 22, 2009, 07:31 PM EST

TUPPER LAKE — A home was damaged by fire early Sunday morning.

Mark Picerno, first assistant chief of the Tupper Lake Fire Department, said the damage from the fire at 9 Third St. was largely contained to a bathroom and the front of the attic. He said the home is owned by Denise DeVirgeles.

“When I got there, flames were coming from the right top corner of the building near the attic,” Picerno said. “We took an aggressive attack and knocked the flames down before they could spread.”

He said other than tight quarters, the department faced little difficulty in fighting the fire.

“Attic fires are tough because of the limited amount of space you have up there,” Picerno said.

He said DeVirgeles wasn’t home at the time. A friend of the family discovered the flames near a light fixture in the bathroom at about 12:30 a.m., evacuated the house and called the fire department, Picerno said.

The cause of the fire is believed to be an electrical issue with the light fixture, Picerno said. He said the building is repairable but uninhabitable because power was turned off while firefighters fought the blaze.

DeVirgeles won’t be able to stay there until the home is deemed safe by the Village of Tupper Lake Codes Enforcement Department. She is believed to be staying with an acquaintance.

It is unclear if anyone else was staying at the home.

Tupper Lake firefighters received mutual-aid and standby assistance from the Piercefield Fire Department. The Tupper Lake Fire Department was back in service at 2:41 a.m.

E-mail Dan Heath at:

dheath@pressrepublican.com