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Around 11pm last night, the City of Cortland Fire Department was dispatched to a reported structure fire at 188 Main Street in the City of Cortland.
Upon arrival, firefighters found heavy smoke and a woman leaning out of a second story window from an apartment yelling for help. Firefighters immediately grabbed a ladder to rescue the woman from the apartment. Everyone else in the building was able to get out.
The fire in the building originated from a second story apartment, but had then spread to the hallway. Fire crews worked quickly to extinguish the flames and had the fire knocked out in about 30 minutes from the time of call.
“We’re lucky we (Fire Department) are only three minutes away. This could’ve been a lot worse.” Chief Wayne Friedman told X101 News.
No firefighters were injured during the fire. The woman rescued was transported via TLC Ambulance to Upstate University Hospital for smoke inhalation. The Red Cross is helping the remaining tenants.
The cause of the fire was found to be a lithium ion battery that was charging in the apartment. Assisting the City of Cortland Fire Department was Cortland Police, TLC Ambulance, NYSEG, and National Grid. Cortlandville Fire assisted with coverage at their station to cover any additional calls in the city.
