A fire started in a bedroom late Thursday afternoon at Hilltop of Pepper, 630 Pepper Ave. in Wisconsin Rapids.

WISCONSIN RAPIDS − A fire that started in a bedroom late Thursday afternoon has displaced 19 residents of Hilltop of Pepper.

At 4:47 p.m. Thursday, a caller reported a fire in a bedroom at the assisted-living facility, which specializes in caring for people with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, Wisconsin Rapids Fire Department Division Chief Brennan Agen said. Hilltop of Pepper, 630 Pepper Ave., has a sprinkler system, which activated and extinguished a large portion of the fire.

When firefighters arrived, they finished putting out the fire, Agen said. There were 19 residents at the facility who had to be placed at a different facility for the night. The Hilltop of Pepper building currently is not inhabitable.

Agen didn’t know how long the residents would be displaced.

At 9:30 p.m. Thursday, a Wisconsin Rapids officer driving by Hilltop heard an alarm and reported it, Agen said. Firefighters responded to the alarm, but the fire had not rekindled, Agen said. Because the home cares for people with dementia, the building is equipped with an alarm system that goes off if a resident tries to open an outside door, Agen said. The electricity to the building had been shut off and when it was turned back on it set the alarm off, Agen said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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Contact Karen Madden at 715-345-2245 or kmadden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KMadden715, Instagram @kmadden715 or Facebook at www.facebook.com/karen.madden.33.

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If you thought the Republican National Convention leaving town meant the end of thousands of visitors wandering downtown Milwaukee in business wear, think again.

The Northwestern Mutual annual conference is back this weekend. More than 12,000 employees and agents of the Milwaukee-based insurance and financial services company will gather downtown for the multi-day event.

Here’s everything you need to know about the conference — including what’s up with those long ribbons many of the employees will be sporting.

How long is the Northwestern Mutual conference?

The conference will run from July 20 to 23. The gathering is typically held at Fiserv Forum and the Baird Center but will be on the Summerfest grounds this year — because takedown of the RNC is still underway at those facilities.

What happens during the Northwestern Mutual conference?

Employees and agents will spend most of their time in Milwaukee attending company meetings and events.

But it’s not all work: the company also dishes out on big-ticket headliners to entertain employees. Last year, country music star Kenny Chesney put on a private concert for the convention-goers. The company is keeping with the country music theme this year, with singer Eric Church scheduled to headline, the Milwaukee Business Journal reported.

What are those ribbons all the Northwestern Mutual people wear?

When you see the ribbons, you know Northwestern Mutual is in town.

Throughout the conference, Northwestern Mutual agents will wear lanyards with colorful ribbons that sometimes extend almost all the way to the floor. The ribbons denote sales goals achieved, benchmarks passed, accomplishments made, and employees earn them over their time at the company.