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The Arlington Fire District was dispatched to a Briarwood Drive home in the Town of Poughkeepsie at approximately 10:50 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 26, where there was a reported two-alarm house fire and smoke coming from the second-story windows of a two-story residence, Arlington Fire Chief William Steenbergh said.
Steenbergh said that crews forced their way into the structure, where they encountered a heavy smoke condition throughout the vacant home. The fire was located on the first floor and in the basement, and was quickly extinguished.
The investigation into the fire determined that the home was vacant at the time the fire broke out after it was purchased just last week. The new owner had been refinishing and staining the floors of the house, and left oil-soaked rags behind.
According to Steenbergh, the cause of the fire was determined to be from the spontaneous combustion of rags that were being used in the refinishing process that were left in the kitchen in a plastic bag. The rags ignited, setting the kitchen wall and floor on fire, burning a hole through the kitchen floor, allowing it to spread to the basement.
Steenbergh noted that “the public is reminded that oil-soaked rags should never be left inside a structure after use, and should always be disposed of in a sealed metal container.”
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