Electrical Short Sparks Fire in Storage Area at Downtown Dallas Library

Authorities are assessing damages after an electrical short sparked a small fire at the downtown Dallas library early Sunday morning.Crews from Dallas Fire-Rescue responded to an automatic alarm at 12:15 a.m. Sunday. They found heavy smoke coming from a lower level of the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library at 1515 Young St. A second-alarm was requested because of the building's size. An investigation showed a light fixture suffered an electrical short in a lower level storage area. The fire triggered the sprinkler system, which put out the flames. Fire damage was limited to the light fixture and the ceiling area immediately surrounding it, according to Jason Evans, spokesman for Dallas Fire-Rescue.Firefighters concentrated on smoke ventilation. No injuries were reported. The fire has been ruled an accident. There was no damage to circulating library materials, according to city spokeswoman Monica Cordova. "Most of the damage was to maintenance supplies for our buildings - possibly some damage to withdrawn/used books for a Friends of the Library sale and possibly our summer reading giveaway books for kids," she said.Crews from equipment and building services were on site assessing damages on Sunday. The library is closed Sunday and Monday for the holiday.   Continue reading...

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