Firefighters stopped a fire from breaking out in a downtown business at 4:30 a.m. Wednesday morning, in part because of early detection by a smoke alarm.
According to a release, a resident in the 300 block of North Randall Street woke up at 4:30 a.m. to the sound of an alarm and found the common area "very smoky." The resident called 911.
Medic 4 and Engine Co. 1 arrived to find a haze of smoke in the building. Ladder Co. 1 accessed a downstairs business, finding two bags of oily rags. One of the bags was smoldering on the floor.
Firefighters cooled the bag with a water can and then took the rags outside, the release said. Crews ventilated the building to clear the smoke and tenants were allowed to return inside, according to the release.