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A person reported the blaze to the fire department around 10:30 p.m. The fire department said it was reported by a resident who could not wake the occupants of another home at the condo. When the fire department responded, the found the family had a fire in their fireplace, but a closed damper forced the unit to fill with smoke and carbon monoxide. A child and two adults were asleep at the time. They were treated at the scene for smoke inhalation and did not require hospitalization.
Assistant Fire Chief Mark Omasta reported 60 parts per million of carbon monoxide at the residence. The meters used by firefighters to detect carbon monoxide alert are 30 parts per million. At 1,000 parts per million, carbon monoxide is lethal in just one hour.
The family did have smoke detectors in the unit, but they were not working. The Fire Department replaced two of the detectors and the batteries in a third detector.
Birchwood Condos are located on Crows Nest Lane in Danbury off of Shelter Rock Road and near Shelter Rock Elementary School. The condos sit on the town line between Danbury and Bethel.
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