Halogen lamp fire damages Bellevue Ave. house

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An odd set of circumstances combined this morning, resulting in fire damaging a Syracuse house, a city fire official said.

Firefighters were called to 1111-1113 Bellevue Ave. at 7:20 a.m. to battle a fire in the attic of the two-story, two-family house, Lt. Ken Heffernan, Syracuse fire investigator, said.

A contractor arrived at the home about 6 a.m. and prepared to paint the attic, Heffernan said. As the contractor was setting up, it became evident there was a power failure in the neighborhood, Heffernan said.

The contractor left at 6:25 a.m., but he forgot he had left a halogen lamp plugged into an electrical outlet while setting up to paint, Heffernan said.

At 6:45 a.m., National Grid restored power to the neighborhood, Heffernan said. The halogen lamp also kicked on and overheated, triggering the fire, Heffernan said. No one was hurt, he said.

The attic received moderate fire damage and the rest of the house experienced heavy water damage, Heffernan said.