Dozens of families displaced in Montgomery Co. apartment building fire
Dozens of families have been displaced following a multi-unit fire at an apartment building in Montgomery County, Maryland.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue said that 43 families were displaced in the fire in the 12000 block of Clarksburg Square Road in Clarksburg on Saturday.
Fire officials said that 78 firefighters were on the scene to help the residents which came from 24 apartments that were impacted by the fire.
Four residents were evaluated and two were transported to local hospitals with non-critical injuries. Four firefighters reported injuries from the fire with two transported in non-critical condition, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue.
The Red Cross of the National Capital & Greater Chesapeake Region disaster action team says that it is assisting more than 16 of the impacted families with basic needs including food, water and medications.
“I ran in the house and got my kids,” Elton Addison, who lives on the first floor of the building, told NBC Washington. “My two youngest ones were in the bath, so they literally went out of the building, no clothes on,” he said.
On Sunday morning, the Montgomery County fire chief held an “after the fire” community initiative to get support for the families.
First responders say that a 911 caller reported smoke coming from her neighbors 1st floor apartment. When she tried to knock at the door, she said that her neighbor didn’t respond. Officials told her to pull the fire alarm and evacuate, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue.
There were five aerial ladder trucks used to help extinguish the fire from the building, according to fire officials.
The fire department said that the 911 center received “multiple calls with screaming in the background” as they responded to the fire.