2 hospitalized, multiple families displaced after Burlington County apartment fire
BURLINGTON COUNTY, N.J. (CBS) -- Multiple families are out of their homes after a two-alarm fire ripped through an apartment building Thursday morning in Edgewater Park, Burlington County.
Deputy Chief Kevin Richards with the Beverly City Fire Department said the fire started just before 12:30 a.m. in the apartment's upper units. Three people had to be rescued from a balcony and another resident was rescued from a bedroom window.
Kimberly Adams lives in the apartment complex, and she said she was stunned by how quickly the flames spread.
"I was hoping that everyone was OK, that they got out," Adams said. "In the name of Jesus, I was hoping they got out."
Jessica Smith lives next door to where the fire happened.
"It was like engulfed in flames, and I came out running, called 911," Smith said. "My neighbors was running out in a wheelchair and a walker."
Smith said she quickly ran over to help six of her neighbors, offering them her apartment as shelter.
"I gave them blankets, dry socks and hot tea to keep them there," Smith said.
One of the men rescued off the balcony was transported to the burn unit at Philadelphia's Jefferson Hospital. A firefighter was also taken to a local hospital as a precaution for smoke inhalation, Richards said.
In total, 19 people from eight apartment units were displaced as a result of the fire and are receiving assistance from the Red Cross.
Fire officials say smoke alarms in the building were working and going off when crews arrived.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.