Two People Injured In Early Morning Snow Day Fires
BALTIMORE (WJZ) — It was a busy day for Baltimore City first responders as crews battled 2 fires Wednesday morning, right as heavy snowfall started.
Hints of red and flashing lights were amid a sea of white.
The harrowing scene was a reality for many living off Clarks Lane Wednesday just before 9 a.m. as a fire broke out in a nearby apartment building.
Shelly Lohmann was inside of her unit on the fifth floor.
"The smoke alarms were going off," she told WJZ. "We didn't know if it was real or not but we opened the door and saw smoke. We came downstairs and everybody came downstairs."
Residents told WJZ they believe the fire started somewhere on the third floor.
Fire officials said that the cause remains under investigation but that 2 people were taken to the hospital.
Fortunately, their injuries were non-life threatening.
Resident Williams Stewart made sure that no one got left behind.
"Had to help one of my neighbors," he said. "She works for one of the residents in the building who was bed-ridden so I had to go in and help her get into a wheelchair and get her out the bed 'cause she couldn't get out by herself."
Those evacuated were not left out in the cold.
"We did have tents arrive on scene just for some temporary shelter until they were able to go back to their apartment," said Baltimore Fire PIO Blair Adams.
While obviously not an ideal day for a fire, those that live in the apartment complex were grateful it wasn't worse.
"There's going to be a helluva lot of water damage and physical damage," said Lohmann. "you know, furniture and stuff and we just renovated the whole building."
Earlier in the morning, fire crews raced to the Royal Maroon Restaurant near Pimlico, called in by community members.
"There's a lot of smoke going in the side," said Yeshiyah Isreal. "I called them on the telephone and let them know what's going on."
No injuries were reported during the daunting task.
"Units arrived. Heavy smoke conditions," said Battalion Chief Dante Stewart.
The cause of the fires is currently under investigation.
Follow @WJZ on Twitter and like WJZ-TV | CBS Baltimore on Facebook