Smoldering cigarettes have caused two fires at Walnut Manor Apartments in less than two years.
Most recently, on Aug. 21, at approximately 8:30 a.m. a fire caused by a lit cigarette on a couch started a blaze that took about two hours to get under control, according to staff reports. The fire effected building 320 and its units.
Once Muncie Fire Department was able to extinguish the blaze, eight apartment units had been destroyed.
However, David Miller, chief fire investigator for the MFD, said the complex abides by fire codes.
Buildings must adhere to the fire codes in effect when construction begins, he said. Unless the building is completely remodeled after the initial construction, Miller said, buildings don't have to adhere to newer codes.
Although the buildings at Walnut Manor don't adhere to the most recent fire codes, the complex is not breaking any laws.
Steps can be taken to reduce the risks of fire, Miller said, such as making the complex smoke-free.
"It's up to the complex itself if they want to make it smoke-free," he said. "You can be safety conscious all you want to be, but you have to rely on the tenants to be safe."
Walnut Manor has arranged for MFD to speak to tenants about measures they can take to ensure their safety, Christopher Smith, regional manager for the complex, said.
"The second fire brought to our awareness that further education was probably deemed necessary for the residents overall on common issues because both fires were directly related to human error," Miller said. "Mechanically, everything is fine."
In addition to having two fire safety seminars on Sept. 6, Smith said residents also will receive a flier about fire safety with a monthly newsletter distributed by Walnut Manor. Smith said fire safety sheets also will be given to perspective residents.
However, a seminar might be too little too late in the eyes of some residents. Raenada Hurd, 27, said she's seriously considering moving out of the complex that she called home for nearly two years.
After the first fire, Hurd said the complex management did not make any efforts to educate the tenants about fire safety.
"I don't think they know what they're doing," she said about the complex managers.
Smith said the management of the complex changed about three years ago and Banyan Realty currently oversees Walnut Manor.
Since Banyan seized managerial duties, there have been two fires in the past year and a half. The first fire in April 2006 caused the destruction and subsequent demolishing of the apartment building, according to staff reports.
While the first fire occurred in a building without fire walls, according to staff reports, Miller said building 320 had one required firewall as stipulated in fire codes.
Fire walls are large walls, often made of concrete, that act as temporary barriers between areas of a building, Miller said. They can effectively slow the burn of a fire for about two hours, he said.
The fire wall in building 320 probably prevented the building next to it from also catching on fire, Miller said.
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