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Pinellas Authorities Probe 'Suspicious' Apartment Fire

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By RAY REYES of The Tampa Tribune and INDIRA LEVINE of News Channel 8

Published: September 28, 2008

INDIAN ROCKS BEACH - Nancy Andersen was enjoying a tranquil Sunday morning in her apartment when she heard a knock on her door.

A neighbor told her that a fire had started in the unit above her, Andersen said. She then grabbed the two things she thought were the most important: her purse and her cat.

"I smelled the smoke and I had to get out," said Andersen, who has lived in the complex at 2207 Bay Boulevard for about a year and a half.

Units from Pinellas Suncoast Fire Rescue and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office responded to the apartments about 10:30 a.m. today after a resident called 911 and reported the fire.

The man living in apartment No. 203, along with several neighbors, grabbed fire extinguishers and managed to put out most of the blaze, the sheriff's office said. The man, whose name was not released by authorities, was sleeping in the living room when the smell of smoke woke him up, deputies said.

The fire, which was contained to apartment No. 203, has been ruled suspicious by sheriff's office detectives.

Rick Walker, the operations chief for Pinellas Suncoast Fire Rescue, did not elaborate on why the fire was deemed suspicious but said it appears an electrical problem may have started the blaze.

Utility company Florida Power & Light told authorities today that the apartments were investigated in the past because the electrical meters were tampered with, Walker said.

The complex's property manager, Kathy McKinnon, said the tenants of Apartment 203 had an issue with the electricity company and did not have power in the unit when the fire started. McKinnon said she did not know why the tenants did not have electricity.

Two families were displaced by the blaze, McKinnon said.

Andersen, the resident who grabbed her purse and cat, was waiting Sunday morning to return to her unit to check on possible damage. She said she feared water from firefighters' hoses may have ruined her closet and clothes.

"It angers me," Andersen said of her situation. "But I can't let it make me crazy."

Reporter Ray Reyes can be reached at (813) 259-7920 or rreyes@tampatrib.com.

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