Fairfield Family Fortunate Alert Neighbor Noticed House Fire

A Fairfield family is fortunate that a neighbor noticed that their house was on fire early Sunday morning, called 911 and got them out of there before a tagedy occurred.

According to a report from the Fairfield Fire Department, the neighbor reported around 7 a.m. seeing flames and smoke coming from the side of a house in the vicinity of Colony and Fairview streets.

When firefighters arrived they reportedly observed smoke and flames coming from the side of the house and learned that the fire had originated from a plastic garbage can outside of the house.

The occupants of the house — a family including two children as well as pets — were reportedly already outside the structure when firefighters arrived. The neighbor had reportedly alerted the occupants to the fire and helped get them out of the house before it tunred serious, according to the report.

The side of the house and a car on the property were reportedly damaged by the fire, which was quickly extinguished by firefighters, according to the report.

The damage was estimated at around $8,000.

The family was reportedly sleeping at the time the fire started.

"This family was very fortunate that their neighbor saw the fire and alerted them when they did," Assistant Chief Scott Bisson said. "This notification combined with the rapid call to 911 allowed the sleeping family to escape this fire while it was still small and outside of the structure.”

The cause of the fire was initially ruled accidental due to improper disposal of smoking materials, according to the report.