Tense moments at an apartment complex when flames tore through homes, injuring two people.
It was just before 9:30 a.m. Tuesday when Corey Clendenen heard screams from outside his apartment complex.
Realizing nearby units were engulfed in flames, he and his wife ran to the scene, both catching people as they jumped from second-story windows.
“It’s what a good human should do right?” Clendenen said. “So I guess that’s kind of how I look at it. I mean, I can be complacent and say nothing and sit and chill, but I guess that’s not our style.”
Clendenen said his only focus was helping the woman trying to escape the second story.
“It burned,” he said. “I mean, it burned the side of my leg, my hand a little bit, so it was hot. I guess I didn't really want for her to jump and drop on her head.”
The incident unfolded before firefighters arrived on scene.
Once on scene at the apartment complex on the 900 block of South 14th Street, firefighters first made sure no one else was inside.
Five Cities Fire Authority Chief Scott Hallett said the firefighters fought the blaze for 45 minutes.
“When I got here, the crews did take action on vertically ventilating the structure to try to remove the heat and gases and also keep the fire from extending to the additional, adjacent units,” Hallett said.
Five units were destroyed and two people were hospitalized. One of the two people who were injured reportedly suffered smoke inhalation. The other was injured while jumping out of a window to escape the flames.
“Right now, we're still trying to determine how many occupants will actually be displaced, but we believe it could be as many as ten as a result of the fire,” Hallett said.
Clendenen says he’s encouraged by how the community has pulled together.
“I think everybody's just kind of worried and waiting to see how displaced these folks are, because they kind of lost,” Clendenen said. “I mean, it's gone.”
Jackie Clendenen has started a fundraiser to help the families involved.
Firefighters are still working to determine the cause of the fire.
