A magnifying makeup mirror reflecting the sun lit some washcloths on fire late Friday morning in a Downtown Easton apartment, a city fire official said.
The mirror was on a shelf on a bathroom window in the third-floor apartment, Deputy Chief Kevin Arnold said.
“The beam hit the mirror,” Arnold said.
The washcloths were destroyed, but the apartment owner’s daughter was coming by to check on things and discovered the smoldering fire, Arnold said. The shelf and the window frame had slight burn marks, but there was no further damage, Arnold said.
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Firefighters soaked the scorched cloths in the sink to make sure they were out, Arnold said. Smoke was ventilated from the apartment to the rear of the building, which property records say is still owned by artist Karl Stirner, although he died a year ago.
The bathroom had two sprinkler heads, so if the fire had burned further, it would have been put out by the suppression system, Arnold said.
It’s not the first time he’s seen this happen in his nearly 30 years with the department, he said. “A sun-catcher” was the culprit the last time, he said.
Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
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