1 Person Killed In Pottstown Apartment Fire, Another Jumps From Second-Story Window
POTTSTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- Authorities are investigating the cause of a deadly fire in Montgomery County that happened early Monday morning. One man was hospitalized after jumping from a second-story window to escape the flames.
The fire broke out around 1:43 a.m. at 318 Chestnut Street in Pottstown. Fire officials said the fire started in one home and spread to another home.
Of the five people who were in the apartment building when the fire broke out, only four were able to make it out safely.
CBS3 viewer video shows the ferocity of the flames coming from the Pottstown apartment.
"I was gonna try to start throwing stuff out the door, and that fast, the whole house was engulfed," resident Tony Lew said.
Lew was one of the five people inside the home when the fire started. He and three others were able to get out safely, including a neighbor who jumped from a second-story window.
His other upstairs neighbor did not make it out.
"He jumped from that ladder to on top of that van to escape the fire and he was yelling back up into the house. And I don't think she made it," Lew said.
At one point the deadly fire spread next door, where a dog sniffed danger and alerted her whole family. Potentially saving their lives in the process.
"The dog was going off downstairs, and I just woke up and knew there was something wrong. Looked out the window and saw orange and knew exactly what it was and woke up everyone else in the house, told them to get out," resident Brad Napper said. "Pretty proud. We got all three dogs out and it's just the three cats were still in there. We're just not sure if they made it out yet or not."
Pottstown Fire Chief Frank Hand says there were no signs of working smoke detectors in the home where the fire started -- a lesson we can all learn from.
"Please, anybody listening, make sure you get smoke detectors. It's been a big issue in our area and we need to make sure that message gets out.
The person who jumped out of the second-story window is being treated at a trauma center in Reading.
Firefighters are waiting to identify the victim killed in this fire until they notify next of kin.
Still no word on how this fire started.
