Careless disposal of cigarettes blamed for Berwick apartment fire

The careless disposal of cigarettes was blamed for igniting a blaze Sunday night that heavily damaged an apartment building on Jordan Street.
The fire likely started in a pile of cigarettes outside the building and was accelerated by dry leaves, according to Dan Young, an investigator with the Maine State Fire Marshal's Office.
Two units were damaged in the fire. Two others were occupied when the fire broke out; Fire Chief Dennis Plante said smoke detectors alerted the inhabitants, who escaped uninjured.
The fire caused about $40,000 worth of damage to the units, which had been undergoing renovations, Plante said. A family of four lived in one unit; a family of two lived in the other.
Plante said the residents will likely move back in to the units, as the landlord is working to repair them.