Cat blamed for Philly fire, 130 residents displaced

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Last updated: January 21, 2013 6:41 p.m.

Cat blamed for Philly fire, 130 residents displaced

Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Fire officials are blaming a cat for a fire that forced the evacuation of 130 people from a West Philadelphia apartment building.

The fire was reported late Sunday night at the West Park apartments.

Investigators tell WPVI-TV that a cat got trapped in a basement transformer causing a short circuit, sparking the blaze and knocking out power.

The fire was controlled in about 45 minutes.

The outage left at least 85 adults and 45 children in the building in the dark. A temporary shelter was set up at West Philadelphia High School.

Officials hoped to have a temporary generator in place Monday morning to allow the residents to return.