An electrical malfunction is eyed as the cause of an early morning fire at 38 Rutledge Ave. that displaced one tenant, a fire official said.
Capt. Brian Tetreault of the Springfield Fire Department said one resident, a 49-year-old man, suffered a minor injury in the fire. Embers landed on his foot while he tried to put out the fire in the ceiling before firefighters arrived. He declined medical care. The fire was confined to the ceiling in the kitchen in the third-floor apartment.
The Western Massachusetts chapter of the American Red Cross is assisting the third-floor resident. The lower floors were not affected by the fire, and residents on the first and second floors were allowed to remain.
The total cost of damage was around $5,000, Tetreault said.