Several people rescued after a fire at Montgomery County apartment complex
Six people were hospitalized and a temporary shelter has been established.
Smoke and an orange glow from a fire awoke residents at an apartment complex in Montgomery County early Saturday morning. The blaze left multiple people hospitalized, including first responders.
Flames emanated from the Bridgeport Suites apartment complex as the fire department for the riverfront borough near King of Prussia responded to the 300 block of West Third Street around 1:30 a.m.
Residents from the 139-unit complex were evacuated, and the building was deemed “temporarily uninhabitable due to smoke,” according to a social media statement from the Borough of Bridgeport.
During the rescue, a ground ladder was needed to rescue some residents from their balconies, according to a Norristown Professional Firefighters Local 2335 Facebook post. Numerous rescues took place at the scene.
Four residents and two police officers were transported to an unknown hospital due to smoke inhalation, the chief of the Bridgeport Fire Department, Steve Wanczyk, told NBC10. He said the fire is believed to have come from one unit, with smoke filling other apartments.
In a video shared on the Local 2335 Facebook account, flames are seen swallowing the balcony of one unit, with a tire in flames as smoke and fire from inside the apartment take over.
A temporary shelter was set up at Bridgeport Borough Hall at 63 W. Fourth St., according to the borough. The American Red Cross of Southern Pennsylvania was helping assist affected people, but a short-term shelter was still in the works.
“Residents are going to be bused to [another] shelter at some point, but we are waiting for the borough,” said a Red Cross spokesperson.