2 Hudson County communities devastated by separate fires
UNION CITY, N.J. -- Two fires two miles apart have displaced 25 families and devastated two communities in Hudson County, New Jersey.
Ashen furniture and DVDs now fill the Salvation Army on Kennedy Boulevard in Union City.
William Campbell was outside when the thrift store caught fire around 7 p.m. Thursday.
"There was a sort of a haze coming out of the building and then, like, a pop pop sound, then the glass blew out," he told CBS2's Ali Bauman. "It was awful. I mean, it was just flames. I've never seen anything like that."
READ MORE: Salvation Army thrift store goes up in flames in Union City
No one was injured, but the 30-year-old store and all the donations inside were destroyed.
"The Salvation Army around the holidays is everywhere, and we're so busy and we're serving so many neighbors in need, and to have this happen right now, it couldn't be a more difficult time for it to happen here at the Salvation Army," said Lt. Col. James Betts, commander of the Salvation Army Eastern Adult Rehabilitation Centers.
The Salvation Army says the Union City location generates about half a million dollars a year. Much of that goes to funding an adult rehabilitation center in Newark.
Donations of clothing, shoes and other household items can still be made at other New Jersey stores, including the main store and warehouse on Pennington Street in Newark.
The North Hudson Fire Department was dousing that fire while simultaneously battling another fire about two miles away in West New York.
READ MORE: 2 dozen West New York families displaced after massive fire destroys apartment building
"The kids are homeless. It's a sad situation," neighbor Danny Mahoney said.
Twenty-five families are displaced after flames destroyed a four-story apartment complex on Madison Street.
Cell phone video shows workers from the bodega below saving two children who were trapped on a fire escape.
"They brought out the ladder, and they were able to get the kids off the fire escape," said Luis Cruz, whose brother owns the bodega.
Thirteen firefighters were injured.
Seventeen-year-old Alan Norona lost his dog, Rio.
"It's just me because my parents and my sisters are always working. He's the only one that's with me. I have practices, I come home late and he's the only one with me," Alan told CBS2's Christina Fan.
The Red Cross is assisting families in West New York.
Authorities are investigating the causes of both fires.