The ceiling, cupboards and walls of a Marvin Gardens apartment at 211 Easterly Parkway were scorched yesterday from an early-morning fire that the resident claims may have been started by his cigarette.

The fire ignited around 2 a.m. in Marvin Gardens apartment 13, located on the northeast corner of the building, State College Police Sgt. Mark Argiro said.

Alpha Fire Co. fire Chief Stanley Clouser said the fire was contained in about an hour to apartment 13, which incurred "extensive" fire and smoke damage; adjoining apartments suffered smoke damage, and basement apartments sustained water damage. No serious injuries were reported.

Clouser said the fire appears accidental but is still under investigation.

Argiro said the initial investigation report reveals that an apartment 13 resident claims he was smoking a cigarette on the living room couch, and the fire may have started that way.

State College police Cpl. Bradley Smail said the fire was actively burning when they arrived. Six fire trucks, three ambulances and several other emergency response vehicles were at the scene for about two-and-a-half hours. Smail said he was unsure if he heard smoke alarms when he arrived.

Clouser said there were reports of apartment tenants trapped on the floor above the fire. Tenants were unable to exit the building because the fire was blocking the stairwell. Clouser said they used ladders to help the tenants out of the building.

Clouser confirmed that the landlord of Marvin Gardens apartments is Rodney Hendricks, who is also the landlord of 500 E. Beaver Ave., where Penn State student Christopher Raspanti, 21, died during a fire allegedly caused by faulty electrical wiring. Hendricks is in the midst of a wrongful death lawsuit over Raspanti's April 2005 death. The lawsuit claims the building was not equipped with adequate safety features or exit routes.

Hendricks was reached by phone but refused to talk and hung up when asked to confirm if he owns Marvin Gardens apartments.

Clouser said several attempts were made to notify Hendricks of the fire, but he was unsure if he had been reached.

Clouser said firefighters reported smoke detectors without batteries and some not working for unknown reasons, specifically in the immediate area of the fire. He said he is unsure if the smoke detectors' maintenance is the landlord's or the tenant's responsibility; the Centre Region Code Administration (CRCA) follows up on issues of fire safety.

Tammy Strouse, CRCA senior secretary, said a statement is expected to be released from the codes office today.

He added that an apartment next to apartment 13 recently had the landlord fix its smoke detector and issue a new fire extinguisher.

Clouser said, for the most part, all three Marvin Gardens buildings were evacuated; about 10 to 13 people were evacuated from the buildings between 2 and 2:30 a.m. yesterday.

"Just about every apartment in the building was affected by smoke," Argiro said.

Robert Dinkelspiel (senior-business management), a Centre LifeLink EMS emergency medical technician, and Nate Shadle, a paramedic, said they treated two people: The apartment 13 resident was treated for minor smoke inhalation and cuts to his feet sustained while exiting the building, and another man was treated for minor smoke inhalation.

Clouser said a firefighter was cut on his hand by broken window glass.

Emergency responders said a 6-month-old chocolate Labrador was taken from the apartment building during the evacuation and transported to Metzger Animal Hospital, 1044 Benner Pike.

A Metzger Animal Hospital doctor, John Griffiths, said the puppy may have some neurological damage, a potential loss of vision and a heightened susceptibility to pneumonia.

Molly Brown, a resident of Marvin Gardens who was forced to evacuate, said she didn't hear smoke alarms until she was outside.

"I just heard banging on the doors through my window," Brown said.

Katherine Davis and David Lindsey, both residents of Marvin Gardens, said their smoke alarms did not sound, but they heard the alarms once they were outside, as well.

"We woke up to police officers knocking on our door," Davis said. "I'm just glad the officers showed up so fast."

Davis said she felt bad for Hendricks because he had been working to fix up the building.

"He has put so much work into these apartments," Davis said. "I feel so bad."

A CATA bus arrived at about 3 a.m. to keep the evacuees warm until it was decided that they could go back into the apartments. About 10 people, a dog and a cat sought refuge from the cold in the bus.

Clouser said that once the scene was cleared, most of the residents were allowed to enter their apartments, not including four apartments affected by smoke and water.

The American Red Cross helped find shelter for the displaced tenants. Penn State also offered four rooms to displaced students, Smail said.

The 200 block of Easterly Parkway was closed for about two-and-a-half hours.