MEXICO – The Mexico and Rumford fire departments responded to an apartment building at 205 Main St. in Mexico shortly after 10 a.m. on Tuesday after a call from a resident there of smoke emanating from one of the walls inside the building.

Within several minutes, firefighters were on the scene and the building was safely evacuated.

After a thorough search, the fire departments discovered that the smoke was coming from an electrical outlet that had burned out, and there was no fire, Mexico Fire Chief Gary Wentzell said. The smoke was trapped in the walls, he said.

Firefighters vented the building for about 45 minutes and when the smoke cleared, residents were able to return to their apartments.

The building is owned by Roland Andrews of Massachusetts.

Wentzell mentioned that he would contact the owner regarding the need for a certified electrical inspector to carefully examine all of the apartment’s electrical outlets to make sure there was no fire danger.

Wentzell added that he was pleased with the quick response by the various agencies, which included Med-Care, the Mexico Police Department, the Rumford Police Department and the Oxford County Sheriff’s Department.