1 dead after fatal fire breaks out at West Chester apartment building
WEST CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) -- At least one person has died after a fatal fire broke out at a West Chester apartment building early Tuesday morning.
Officials said the West Chester Borough Fire Department and West Chester Borough Police Department with help from the Good Fellowship Ambulance & EMS Training Institute responded to a fire inside a four-unit apartment building on the 50 block of Patton Alley just before 6 a.m.
Crews were able to pull a resident from the building and EMS then took them to the hospital, where they later died.
West Chester Fire Chief Steve Pelna said a police officer and EMS worker were treated for smoke inhalation, and a firefighter on the scene sustained an ankle injury while responding to the blaze.
12/26/23Update 8:08 AM - Sadly this mornings incident is a fatal fire. All units are still working at the scene. Update: Fire under control at this time. At 5:42AM the West Chester Borough Fire Department along with Good Fellowship Ambulance & EMS Training Institute and West Chester Borough Police Department were dispatched to the 50 block of Patton Alley for a building fire. Upon arrival crews found heavy fire. A resident was removed from the building and turned over to EMS. Still an active incident, all departments and assisting agencies remain on scene at this time.
Posted by WC Pio Dave March on Tuesday, December 26, 2023
The fire was placed under control in about an hour. In total, Pelna said six people were displaced from their apartments, which were deemed uninhabitable.
"It's extremely heartbreaking, especially when you walk into the apartments and you see freshly unwrapped gifts from Christmas, Christmas trees, decorations," Pelna said. "So during a time of joy and time with your families, it's certainly heartbreaking."
Authorities have said that this is still an active investigation.