PHOTO: Courtesy of WLUK
GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Dozens of residents were forced from their homes after an apartment fire on Green Bay’s east side. The fire at the August Manor Apartments was reported just after 8 p.m. Tuesday night.
Lavondra Klyce is one of the 35 people who lived in the 24 unit apartment building where a fire broke out in the basement. She said, “Gotta think fast. Left out with one shoe, through the window – one shoe was in, one shoe was out.”
Klyce said she was sleeping and the smoke detector woke her up, adding, “I seen a mist of smoke, went to the door, it was – I heard the little alarm, all pitch black, hurried up closed the door, went back to my room, looked out the window seen nothing but firefighters, ambulance, everything. I banged on the window and one of neighbors was like there she is, there she is and the firefighter came and busted the window open and got me out.
Green Bay Metro Fire says when crews arrived on scene, it was chaotic. Firefighters and residents encountering thick black smoke inside — making it nearly impossible for those trapped in their apartments to find their way out.
According to Lt. Nick Craig, “Five or more were taken out of second story windows via ladders and once the smoke was able to be cleared, a little bit in the hallway area, the rest of the residents were evacuated.”
One firefighter and one resident were taken to the hospital, where they were treated and released.
The Red Cross, which offers free fire safety home visits, is opening a shelter to help those who were forced from their home.
“We expected approximately 35 residents, we had 22 that utilized the shelter. We opened the shelter up to provide a place to stay and obviously to provide some of the simple essentials, food, water, we’re providing some comfort kits to provide some of those basic essentials that people may not have grabbed as they were fleeing away,” said Rebecca Rockhill, executive director of the American Red Cross Northeast Chapter.
While the fire department estimates about $250,000 in damage was done to the building, they credit working smoke detectors for helping to save lives.
Lt. Craig added, “For us to physically have to go in and take 35 people out would have taken a long time, so those alarms alerted the residents. That’s the takeaway here, they were working, they did their job and got people moving towards the exits.”
Authorities have not yet determined the cause of the fire.
There’s no word when residents will be allowed to return.
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