SALINA – A fire in a duplex in central Salina has been blamed on an overloaded electrical system, according Salina Fire Marshall Roger Williams.

Two occupants of one side of the duplex at 404 Rahm Street escaped without injury.

There was no one home in the other side of the duplex at the time of the fire.

Firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the fire, which prevented it from spreading to the other half of the duplex.

One side of the duplex was extensively damaged by fire and heat, while the other side was not damaged.

The two occupants of the damaged side were assisted by North Central Kansas Chapter of the American Red Cross.

The occupants of the other half were asked to stay elsewhere for Sunday night due to the fire damage next door and because they had an infant, according to Williams.

Williams said that five cats lived in the damaged half of the duplex. Two of them were recovered, one was found deceased inside the residence, and the other two were not located.

He said the home had an excessive amount of items plugged into electrical outlets, which overloaded the home’s electrical system.