The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety says it responded to a fire at the River Terrace Apartments on Thursday afternoon. It says “working smoke detectors and a fire alarm system saved lives.” The cause of the fire is believed to be a person who fell asleep while smoking. Firefighters have not said if anyone was injured. The fire damage was contained to one unit, but there was smoke on the second and third floors. The public safety department tells residents to contact it if they are in need of smoke or carbon monoxide detectors as the department recently received a shipment of more than 360 smoke alarms. Assisting at the scene of Thursday’s fire were the St. Joseph Department of Public Safety, the Benton Township Fire Department, the Lincoln Township Fire Department, and Medic One.
