Wednesday, February 4, 2015

1 DEAD, 3 INJURED IN MASSIVE NORRISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA APARTMENT COMPLEX FIRE






 

1 DEAD, 3 INJURED IN MASSIVE NORRISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA APARTMENT COMPLEX FIRE


February 4, 2015

NORRISTOWN, PA
 
A woman died and three other people, including a firefighter, were injured in a massive overnight blaze at a Norristown apartment building.

Montgomery County dispatchers said the four-alarm fire at the Norris Apartments on the 600 block of Swede Street was reported at 12:45 a.m. Wednesday.

The blaze was initially reported in the basement, but firefighters encountered heavy flames throughout the building and had to make rescues from all four floors, fire officials said.

A Red Cross spokesman said 15 people were provided hotel rooms for Wednesday night. A shelter established at Norristown High School earlier in the day has been closed.

The Salvation Army of Greater Philadelphia was also helping the victims. The agency said it planned to serve meals to 45 people, including residents and emergency responders, at the temporary shelter through Thursday morning. The agency said it would provide other assistance as needed.

Officials said the fire apparently spread through a trash chute.
"Crews had their hands full when they got here," Fire Chief Thomas O'Donnell told reporters at the scene.

The woman died despite efforts to rescue her from her fourth-floor apartment, fire officials said. Her name was not released.

Three others were taken to hospitals for treatment of various injuries, dispatchers said.

O'Donnell said one of the injured was a firefighter who cut his hand.
Firefighters battled the blaze, during which the roof and fourth-floor walls in the rear of the building collapsed, for several hours.

The fire was under control by early Wednesday, though crews remained on the scene to damp down embers and flames.

The Fire Department said the collapsed roof and walls as well as icy streets and sidewalks posed significant challenges for firefighters. Portions of the building will need to be taken down, fire officials said.

The cause and origin of the fire remains under investigation, although it is believed that it started in the basement inside a trash can.