High school team saves tenants from apartment fire

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Fire officials say the Sitka High School basketball team helped residents escape from a burning Anchorage apartment building that was left heavily damaged.

The Alaska Dispatch News reports that no injuries were reported in the Wednesday fire, but the Anchorage Fire Department says 25 people have been displaced.

The boys basketball team had been in Anchorage for a state tournament and were on their way to breakfast when Coach Andy Lee says one of the players spotted the blaze.

Lee says the players banged on apartment doors and windows to alert those inside and helped escort nearly a dozen people to safety.

Firefighters arrived and were able to extinguish the flames about 45 minutes after the team called for help.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

CBS Anchorage affiliate KTVA-TV reports the blaze was initially a two-alarm fire because of the way the wind was pushing the flames. According to a city fire marshal, firefighters were able to contain the blaze before it spread because of its close proximity to their station.

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