MIAMI (AP/WSVN) — After 10 hours of battling the flames, a massive fire that broke out at a four-story apartment complex in Miami on Monday morning has been extinguished.
Firefighters and police officers arrived at the building just west of Interstate 95 near downtown Miami after receiving calls about a fire around 8:15 a.m., and began rescuing residents from the building’s balconies, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said during a news conference.
Suarez said arriving first responders also found a man with gunshot wounds at the scene. He was taken to a hospital, where he was in critical condition. Officials said the shooting is part of an active investigation. They offered few other details, other than calling it an “isolated incident.”
“We arrived on the scene, we found that one person has been shot, that person has been transported to JMH hospital,” he said. “At the same time, our firefighters responded to this fire and saw that this fire was escalating in intensity. They rescued several people, including some people that were rescued from their balconies.”
Officials said around 50 people were evacuated from the apartment complex.
Three firefighters, Suarez said, were transported to the hospital due to smoke inhalation. The firefighters are in stable condition. Two have been were released on Monday afternoon.
“They were checked out for medical. It was determined that they should go to the hospital just to get further evaluation. So, we had a total of three of them that were transported to the hospital,” said Miami Fire Captain Ignatius “Iggy” Carroll Jr.
One resident was also transported to the hospital as a precaution.
Suarez also said the fire was the largest residential fire in the city in the last 25 years.
“Over 40 units at our department have been deployed. As you can see, multiple angles to attack the fire, but this is a three-alarm-fire we haven’t had in 25 years,” Suarez said. “So this is something that is obviously a large event for us and they’re doing a heroic job in dealing with it, including rescuing residents throughout this incident.”
City of Miami Fire Lt. Pete Sanchez said crews are working to assess how many residents lived in the building and said they are working with the Red Cross.
“We went to a defensive strategy because it is too dangerous for the firefighters to work inside,” said Sanchez. “We’re trying to account for all the number of residents, how many lived in the building, we’re working with Red Cross.”
Residence who lived near the apartment were told to leave their homes as crews worked to contain the fire.
7Skyforce hovered over the apartment Monday afternoon, where the apartment’s roof was burned down. In some spots, the roof collapsed. Smoke was still see billowing out of the building.
Crews focused their water hoses to the eastern section of the building as the fire continued to burn.
Police said the shooting was an isolated incident and that there is no danger to the public.
“We just want to make sure that everyone knows that we are, this is a unified command,” said Miami Police Assistant Chief Chiquita Thomas Butler. “So we are working very closely with the fire department and making sure that everyone is safe, everyone feels secure. This is an isolated incident. We need the public to understand that. It is still very active with everything but we don’t want people to be alarmed, and we are handling it to the best of our abilities.”
Atlantic Housing Management, the company that manages Temple Court apartments, said in a statement that one of their employees was found shot inside the complex.
“We are still determining the cause of these events, and we are checking for other injuries. Police are investigating, and we will help in whatever ways we can,” the management company’s statement said. “We are grieved by all that has happened today, and our thoughts and prayers are with our team member and his family and residents of the Temple Court community.”
Atlantic Housing Management
A three-alarm fire requires more than one fire squad, more pumpers and ladder trucks.
A reunification center was established at Jose Marti Park, located at 351 SW 4th Ave.
Residents from the building, many of them elderly, were taken to a staging area where they were offered food and any medications they needed, Suarez said. He added that at least 20 people had been processed and were rehoused with family, and some 20 more were expected.
Miami Police and Fire were seen helping residents get inside the reunification center.
One woman said her grandmother, who is a resident of the apartment complex, called her about the building being on fire.
“I was on my way to work this morning and I get a call that ‘My building is on fire, help.’ That’s my baby so anything I can do to be here, I have to,” said Ruth.
Ruth’s grandmother, a seven-year resident at the apartment complex, arrived at the reunification center on Monday afternoon, joining other displaced residents.
Ruth said she’s been a frequent visitor at her grandmother’s house, and while she’s happy that her grandmother is OK, she is heartbroken about the items that were left behind and the other people that are displaced.
“Thankfully, my grandmother has where to go, but there are other friends of her, and there’s family belongings and stuff that have been passed down, traditions from generations down that we don’t know if we are able to get it,” said Ruth.
Ruth said that her grandmother’s apartment sustained heavy water damage. She added that she was grateful for the officials who helped get her grandmother out of her home.
The state fire marshal arrived on scene and is investigating the cause of the fire.
The roadways surrounding the apartment have been blocked.
Please check back on WSVN.com and 7News for more details on this developing story.
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