An electrical fire in a condo tower in downtown Portland, Ore., caused $100,00 worth of damage on Dec. 30. The fire started in the electrical vault on the 21st floor of the 26-story building, and it couldn't be extinguished until the power supply was shut off, according to a report in the Oregonian.
Firefighters used "specialized extinguishers" to control the fire and helped nearby residents out of the building. The call escalated to a two-alarm fire because of the smoke buildup, an electrical smell in the air and the number of people affected, the report said.
The damage was mostly contained to the electrical room; at the time investigators did not know exactly what sparked the fire, but described its cause as "electrical."
