Resident: Neighbor's 18 TVs Might Have Caused Hi-Rise Fire

[SUBMAN1]

Man! Get a life and get off the TV's!

http://www.local10.com/news/9504214/detail.html

POSTED: 10:46 am EDT July 12, 2006



MIAMI BEACH, Fla. -- A neighbor of the sixth-floor unit where a fire started at the Hotel Versailles on Tuesday claims the man who lives there is a nuisance who did strange things with the 18 TVs he owned that might have contributed to the blaze.Ivette Valerio, who lives in unit No. 605, said the occupant of the apartment, where a blind man was treated for smoke inhalation, had 18 TVs that were all plugged into his electrical outlets. She said he used two TVs to prop the door open and would sometimes place TVs in the stairwell, obstructing the path.Firefighters said the amount of clutter in the unit made it difficult for them to fight the fire.The building, a hotel-condominium combination, is located at Collins Avenue and 34th Street.Miami-Dade and Miami Beach firefighters responded to the fire at about 4 p.m. and were able to keep it confined to the single unit, although about 300 residents were forced to evacuate.The AmericanRed Cross is providing 150 of the residents with temporary housing in hotels for the next seven days.For some of the residents, the evacuation was the second within a year. The building was closed last summer for multiple city code violations.The Red Cross was also on hand Wednesday to deliver water and snacks to the residents who were gathered outside the building waiting to collect their belongings.A blind man was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation and did need to be hospitalized. It is not certain if the blind man is the same person about whom Valerio complained.

Condo VP: Board Was Voted Out By Owners
Local 10 has learned from Jose Fraga, the condominium association vice president, that the condominium owners voted the board out Tuesday before the fire.Fraga said that the association will hold an information meeting Saturday morning at the building. He also said that they have hired electrical engineers to inspect the building.It is expected that residents will be kept out of the building for at least two days because of the water damage -- but for some, it could be considerably longer.Fraga said he expects owners to also address the issue of replacing the board at the Saturday meeting.Investigators have not yet determined what caused the fire.

[TteFAboB]

Miami's TV network must have some really, really interesting TV shows.

[STEED]

Sounds like a crackpot to me.

[SUBMAN1]

Originally Posted by STEED

Sounds like a crackpot to me.

My sentiments exactly