Fort Worth apartment fire causes partial roof collapse, displaces tenants
A fire engulfed a three-story apartment building in east Fort Worth early Thursday morning, causing significant damage including a partial roof collapse that displaced all tenants, according to fire department spokesman Mike Drivdahl.
There were no injuries as a result of the blaze in the 6100 block of Oakway Lane, and firefighters rescued one cat, he said. He told the Star-Telegram he was unsure how many people live in the building but noted there are 12 units. Everyone was able to safely get out of the structure before firefighters arrived a little before 5 a.m.
The first crews on the scene went inside the building to try to stop the fire, encountering heavy flames and smoke, Drivdahl said. But they were ordered to come out when the roof partially collapsed, making the structure unstable.
Whereas most roofs on homes in Fort Worth are constructed of fairly light asphalt shingles, Drivdahl said, heavier Spanish-style tiles made up this roof. That “makes it a lot more dangerous” in a situation like this, with all that weight pressing down on the roof, he said.
Firefighters had the fire under control in under an hour Thursday morning and were on the scene through around 9 a.m. checking for hot spots, Drivdahl said.
“From what I saw of the pictures from when they first arrived, there was a lot of fire,” he said. “They did everything they could to make that initial attack and try to get it knocked down before it spread anywhere else. But because of that structural damage, it was unsafe to continue to stay inside.”
When firefighters eventually went into the building, he said, they were able to find the cat, which was returned to its owner.
Drivdahl said he was thankful smoke detectors appeared to have woken up everybody inside the building, though tenants may need help in the coming days and weeks. The American Red Cross was outside the building helping tenants either find a place to stay or get financial help.
Investigators couldn’t immediately determine a cause on Thursday morning and were looking into how the fire started, Drivdahl said. Witnesses indicated flames started high up on the outside of one side of the building, around the second or third floor, he said. It spread upward to the attic and the roof.
The second and third floor sustained the most damage from the fire, Drivdahl said. But all 12 apartments were affected by either the fire, smoke or water.
