New London — City firefighters extinguished a blaze Tuesday that caused moderate damage to an apartment and displaced its two residents.

Shortly after 5 p.m., Fire Battalion Chief Keith Nichols said, firefighters arrived at the Sandalwood apartment complex at 177 Nautilus Drive to find smoke coming from a ground-floor apartment, Unit 4. Firefighters forced their way in and found a fire burning the wall and ceiling of a hallway.

It took about 10 minutes to extinguish the flames. The apartment sustained heat and water damage. Much of the water damage appeared to have been caused by a broken pipe in the wall.

The local chapter of the American Red Cross is providing temporary housing and emergency supplies for the two occupants.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the fire marshal’s office. No one was home at the time and no injuries were reported.

g.smith@theday.com