3-alarm apartment fire displaces almost 50 residents in far east Fort Worth
Fort Worth firefighters battled a 3-alarm apartment fire in the 13000 block of Gazebo Lane, on the far east side of the city, that displaced almost 50 residents Wednesday morning.
The fire at 13716 Gazebo Lane was reported shortly after 8 a.m. and firefighters arrived on scene in less than five minutes, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth Fire Department told the Star-Telegram at the scene. The fire was considered under control after an hour and a half.
One firefighter sustained burns and was taken to a hospital. No other injuries were reported.
City investigators are still looking into what started the fire and will review video from security cameras to help identify a cause.
The fire was contained to one building at the complex. Sixteen units were damaged by either water or fire, and 15 of those were occupied. A spokesperson said 43 residents were displaced. The Red Cross arrived on scene to assist the affected residents.
There was already fire coming from the roof and second floor of the two-story building when first responders arrived, and the firefighters battled 20 mph winds and 29 mph gusts from the north. More than 90 firefighters, including assistance from the Euless Fire Department, worked the scene, a spokesperson said.
Vanessa Richardson, a six-month resident of the apartment building, said she was asleep when the fire started, but her roommate was up making coffee and woke up to a burning smell.
“He banged on my door and told me to get out and there was a fire,” Richardson told the Star-Telegram at the scene. “So I grabbed my phone, documents and my house shoes and ran outside, and I saw the unit on the end of my building was on fire. I had enough time to go and run in and get my cat out of the bathtub who was hiding.”
Richardson said she had not heard from first responders how long it will take until they finished at the scene but she expected them to be there for the rest of the day.
“At the end of the day, everyone is all right. I’m not hurt. It could have been much worse,” Richardson said.
Fire Department officials said in a social media post that the three alarms were called as a precaution to make sure there were enough crews at the scene to help with evacuations and the possibility of the fire spreading because of the wind.
“The fire had advanced pretty far before the Fire Department arrived on scene even though it took just minutes to get there,” the department said. “Anything was possible in these conditions.”
The Fire Department asked residents to avoid the area and allow first responders the space they need to work.
This story was originally published December 10, 2025 at 9:40 AM.
