Apartment Fire Leaves 16 Occupants Displaced - Updated

City of Madison Fire investigators have determined that the September 9 fire at 2101 Pike Drive was caused by careless use of smoking material. The fire in the eight-unit, two-story apartment building left 16 residents without a place to live. City of Madison firefighters were called to at 2:07 Tuesday morning. The first-in crew, Ladder Company 6 arrived to find flames through the roof of the structure. The crew attempted entry through the front door, but only made it four to six feet into the building before being met with heavy flames and extreme heat. Residents self-evacuated the building before crews arrived. Firefighters conducted primary and secondary searches of the building as they brought the fire under control, but no one was left in the building and there were no injuries. Fire in the roof remained stubborn. Knockdown of the fire took place at 3:10 a.m., but crews continued to discover hot spots and flare-ups. Crews remained at the scene for part of the day to monitor hot spots and extinguish any flare-ups. Damages are estimated at $500,000. Residents of the building were assisted by Red Cross.