Mt. Kisco Fatal Fire Caused by Faulty Electrical Outlet
An investigation by county authorities concluded Thursday afternoon that a faulty electrical outlet in an upstairs bathroom caused the Wednesday night fire in a Mount Kisco group home that claimed the life of a resident.
The Westchester Cause and Origin Team released its findings less than 24 hours after the blaze at 43 Highland Ave. that killed 50-year-old Richard Bouman.
Mount Kisco Fire Chief Tom Jackson said close to 70 firefighters from Mount Kisco and Bedford Hills responded at about 9:20 p.m. to battle the fire at the three-story house. Although the fire was knocked down within 10 minutes, personnel remained on the scene until about 2:30 a.m. Firefighters from Chappaqua were placed on standby.
Bouman was sleeping in a back upstairs bedroom and could not be reached in time by firefighters, Jackson said. The Westchester County Medical Examiner determined on Thursday that the cause of death was smoke inhalation.
Jackson said there was extensive damage upstairs to the rear portion of the house that is operated by Community Living Corp in Bedford. There was also smoke and water damage throughout the house.
No firefighters were injured during the incident, although one other person, believed to be a staff member, was transported to the hospital for smoke inhalation, Jackson said.
It was not immediately known how many people lived in the house or were on the premises when the fire broke out.
The other residents were taken to alternate sites by the group home operator.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
