Waukesha man dies from injuries received in Thanksgiving Day fire

WAUKESHA - An already tragic Thanksgiving Day fire that badly damaged a Waukesha mixed-use building has now resulted in the death of one of its occupants.

The Waukesha Fire Department said it was recently notified that Thomas Buffone died at Ascension Columbia St. Mary's Regional Burn Center in Milwaukee on Nov. 30, one week following the afternoon fire in an upstairs apartment over what historically has been a commercial building at the corner of Oakland and Arcadian avenues.

According to an updated news release, department officials said the fire is now believed to have started as the result of either an unattended candle or an overloaded electrical outlet at a computer workstation in the apartment's dining room.

Buffone, the only occupant of that unit, was rescued by firefighters and initially taken to ProHealth Waukesha Memorial Hospital with what at the time was listed as life-threatening injuries. He was later transferred for specialized treatment at the burn center.

"The Waukesha Fire Department would like to express our condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Buffone," Assistant Fire Chief Joseph Hoffman said.

The fire, reported at 4:30 p.m. Nov. 23 by a passerby who saw smoke coming from a second-floor window, caused an estimated $60,000 damage, including $10,000 in contents, to the 1918 building recently valued at about $259,000.

Hoffman noted that the structure was built before the advent of building codes that require residential occupancies to have built-in fire sprinklers and a monitored fire alarm detection system. (The first-floor commercial building has an Arcadian Avenue storefront, but it has been used for other purposes in recent years.)

Contact reporter Jim Riccioli at (262) 446-6635 or james.riccioli@jrn.com. Follow him on X at  @jariccioli.