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A Chattanooga man is accused of setting fires in his apartment that endangered the lives of everyone in a downtown high-rise building. Lonnie Kaufmann, 57, has been charged with aggravated arson in connection with a fire at The Overlook Apartments on Boynton Drive that occurred on Sunday, December 26, 2021. According to CFD investigators, there were two separate fires in Kaufmann’s apartment that were intentionally set by the suspect. Kaufmann suffered minor smoke inhalation and was transported to the hospital. He was treated and released and taken to the Silverdale Detention Center. His aggravated arson charge stems from the fact that the fires were set in an occupied structure and put other residents’ safety at risk. On 12/26/21 at 12:44 PM, Blue Shift companies were dispatched to 1201 Boynton Drive to the Overlook Apartments for a commercial fire alarm. Crews arrived at the high-rise residential structure and learned that the smoke alarm activation was coming from a unit on the second floor. CFD personnel proceeded up the stairwell and upon accessing the second floor, they found light smoke visible in the hallway. Firefighters found heavy smoke and low visibility in Kaufmann's apartment and located flames in the kitchen/dining area. They attacked the fire, knocking it down fast. It was out by 1:07 PM. Ventilation was performed until all smoke was cleared from the structure. Air monitoring was conducted to ensure that it was safe for occupants to return to their apartments. As this was going on, other firefighters conducted evacuation/shelter-in-place efforts, evacuating occupants on floors two and three and sheltering non-ambulatory residents in place. They also checked on residents on floors 3 through 8. High-rise fire responses are very labor intensive and firefighters and investigators did an excellent job covering all bases. Fortunately, there were no other injuries in this incident.

Overlook arson

Chattanooga firefighters had a fire out within minutes of arriving on the scene of an apartment complex on Central Drive. At 1:27 PM Tuesday, Blue Shift companies responded to the Rustic Village Apartments (510 Central Drive) following reports of black smoke coming out of one of the apartment buildings. Hamilton County EMS personnel arriving on the scene confirmed that smoke was coming from the second floor. Firefighters found flames in one of the apartments and quickly extinguished the fire. It was out by 1:39 PM. There were no injuries. The fire was contained to one apartment. The cause is under investigation. Squad 13, Ladder 13, Quint 8, Engine 15, Quint 21, Quint 6, Ladder 7, Battalion 1, Battalion 2 (Blue), CFD’s Operations Chief and CFD’s Investigation Division responded. Thanks to the HCEMS Medic 11 crew for taking quick action at the complex. They were already on scene when CFD arrived and knocked on doors to get residents out of the building.

Rustic Village fire 1

Chattanooga firefighters working a 24-hour Christmas shift responded to a multitude of calls, including a residential fire that’s now under investigation. The call came in at 1:40 AM on Sunday to a home in the 2400 block of Bailey Avenue that contains several different apartments. There were reports of fire in one of the units and it was unclear if anyone was home in the other apartments. A second alarm was called for additional staffing due to the possibility of entrapment. A small fire was found in the back apartment of the house and responding Red Shift companies had it out very fast. No one else was found in the other apartments. A resident was being monitored on the scene for possible smoke inhalation. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

bailey ave house fire

With the help of downtown businesses and the Chattanooga Police Department, the Chattanooga Fire Department was able to swiftly apprehend the suspect believed to be connected to a string of recent arson cases. Brandon England, 23, has been arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated arson following multiple dumpster and trash fires set overnight Monday (12/20/21) into the early morning hours of Tuesday (12/21/21). The intentional fires caused the evacuation of two apartment buildings and had CFD companies working at multiple locations. There were 11 dumpster and trash fires from Main Street to Cowart Street. It’s believed the fires were all set around the same time (midnight). Two apartment buildings (one at 14th & Market and the other at East Main & Market) had to be evacuated because smoke from the dumpster fires went throughout the structures, setting off the fire alarms. Heat from the fires in the enclosed dumpster areas set off the sprinkler systems in the trash chutes, which kept flames from spreading to the apartments. Both buildings were ventilated to remove the smoke and residents were then able to return to their homes. Thankfully, there were no injuries. Businesses in the impacted areas and Chattanooga police assisted in the investigation, leading to the suspect being identified, questioned and arrested on Tuesday afternoon. The fires could have damaged several businesses and buildings had it not been for the hard work of Chattanooga firefighters. The blazes also endangered the lives of all of the residents in the two apartment buildings. If the sprinklers had not done their job, the CFD could have been working two apartment fires at the same time and things could have been much worse. Teamwork and diligence led to the break in the investigation.

“Our firefighters did an outstanding job responding to so many fires in different locations all in the same timeframe and they were able to get everything extinguished quickly. Our investigators then worked to build the case and bring this to a close,” said CFD Operations Chief Rick Boatwright. “We appreciate all of the assistance we received from the community and CPD.”

The suspect could face additional charges in relation to these cases.

Downtown arson fires 4

A string of intentionally set fires in Downtown Chattanooga forced the evacuation of two apartment buildings very early Tuesday morning and had CFD companies working at multiple locations. There were 11 dumpster and trash fires from Main Street to Cowart Street. It’s believed the fires were all set at the same time, around midnight. Two apartment buildings (one at 14th & Market and the other at East Main & Market) had to be evacuated because smoke from the dumpster fires went throughout the structures, setting off the fire alarms. Heat from the fires in the trash chutes also set off sprinkler systems in those areas. Both buildings were ventilated to remove the smoke and residents were then able to return to their homes. Water from the sprinkler systems was confined to the trash chutes. Great work by Green Shift units to get the fires extinguished quickly in so many different spots. The investigation into the downtown arson cases is ongoing. CFD investigators are actively working to pursue all angles and leads.

Downtown arson fires 2