Source of Burning Smell On Blount Street Remains A Mystery

A Blount Street resident reported smelling smoke inside her building Thursday night, sending several Madison Fire Department crews to the area for a possible structure fire.
 
The caller stated she searched the building and couldn’t figure out where the smell was coming from. She thought it was possible it was coming from a third-floor apartment.
 
No alarms were sounding and nobody was evacuating when firefighters arrived. Engine 1 proceeded to the third floor and detected an odor of wood or paper burning. When they made contact with the resident in the unit where it was believed the smoke may be originating, she said she too smelled the odor but didn’t know where it was coming from.
 
Firefighters inside the building continued to search the third floor and adjacent floors as others examined the building’s exterior. Nothing was found, and the odor of burned materials remained isolated to this third-floor unit.
 
Back at the apartment, firefighters checked the stove, fireplace, and a grill on the patio. All were cool to the touch, and a thermal imaging camera showed no elevated temperatures. Though some witnesses said they saw smoke coming from the apartment, the resident said she didn't know where it came from. There was no evidence of burned materials inside the apartment.
 
After investigating and finding no explanation for the burning smell, and all other conditions returning to normal, all companies left the scene and returned to service.