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Fire damages Adirondack Correctional building

A housing unit at Adirondack Correctional Facility in Ray Brook was evacuated Sunday morning after fire broke out in the duct work above a kitchen and bathroom area.

The Saranac Lake Volunteer Fire Department responded to a call from officials at the medium-security state prison at 6:28 a.m. with 12 members and three trucks.

Prison staff used the facility’s fire hoses to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived, according to Saranac Lake fire Chief Brendan Keough.

“They were able to knock it down very quickly,” he said. “We investigated, checked for extensions and did overhaul. It was a grease fire in duct work on the third floor that served a bathroom and kitchen area. It extended a little bit up into the attic space. Most of the damage was contained to the kitchen area, and a little bit of the attic and the bathroom.”

Inmates in the housing unit were evacuated to another building during the incident, Keough said. No injuries were reported.

Keough said the cause of the fire is being investigated by the state Office of Fire Prevention and Control.

The Lake Placid Volunteer Fire Department responded to the scene in mutual aid with two trucks and 12 members. Two trucks and eight members from the Bloomingdale Volunteer Fire Department stood by at the Saranac Lake fire station during the call. Saranac Lake firefighters were back in service at 9:06 a.m.

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