Burned Dallas Condo Complex Still Unsafe For Fire Investigators
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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Two days after fire engulfed a North Dallas condominium complex, firefighters remained on scene monitoring what's left of the four-story building.
Firefighters continued to find new smoke Sunday coming from parts of the building, so they have to be ready to respond to any new threats.
For former residents, the sight of what is now ruins is a painful reminder of all they've lost.
A gaping hole on the side of the burned-out building is all that's left of Joey Davenport's first floor unit. He and his family were able to make it out with little more than a birth certificate, his wife's wedding ring, and his one-year-old son Stirling's pacifier.
"Now we're just trying to figure out what to do next... all the clothes on my back are things that people have loaned or given to us," Davenport said.
His family got out early along with many of the residents who left calmly never expecting the fire to grow out of control so fast.
"We were knocking on doors as many as we could before we left, and people were still sleeping. They didn't know," Davenport said.
Vehicles remain trapped in the flooded garage beneath the first floor.
With partial collapses continuing throughout the building, it isn't clear if they can be saved.
From a safe distance Davenport could see the blue, plastic chassis of his son's toy car among the debris outside his former home. He's grateful to have insurance, but his heart goes out to his neighbors who have lost nearly everything they owned.
"They were a tight-knit community, and they took to Stirling and the other few kids that lived there and treated them as their own grandchildren," Davenport said.
The Red Cross was back on site to help survivors like Davenport.
A spokesperson for the group encourages other victims to contact them as help is still available for those in need.
"Trial comes in life, and you don't expect it to be to this magnitude all at once, but we just deal," Davenport said.
Firefighters planned to remain on site Sunday night with at least two engines and two ladder trucks. But they say it could be days before investigators can get inside the building to try to determine a cause.
