Chamblee apartment fire forces evacuations on Mother’s Day
Chamblee apartment building catches fire
A fire at a residential and retail complex in Chamblee forced people from their homes on Sunday evening and closed down a section of a major toad for several hours.
CHAMBLEE, Ga. - A Mother’s Day fire at an apartment complex in Chamblee forced residents from their homes Sunday afternoon as firefighters worked to contain a blaze that spread across part of the roof.
What we know:
The fire happened at the Windsor Parkview Apartments on Peachtree Boulevard in DeKalb County. Officials with DeKalb County Fire Rescue said the fire started in an air conditioning unit on the roof of the building.
Fire crews said the flames spread quickly, causing a partial roof collapse. Despite the damage, firefighters were able to contain most of the fire to the roof area, officials said.
Residents described seeing heavy smoke pouring from the building as emergency crews arrived.
"There was a whole bunch of smoke, black smoke everywhere," resident Gerald Watley said.
Watley said he rushed to the apartment complex after realizing someone close to him was still inside the building.
"When I saw it, it was like emergency immediately," he said. "I rushed over here because my girl was here, she was asleep, and I kept trying to call and I saw the smoke and everything. I’ve never seen anything like this."
Resident Kathy Combs said she was away at the grocery store preparing for Mother’s Day when her daughter called to tell her about the fire.
"I panicked because I’m on the street, I’m not here with her," Combs said. "When I turned around and tried to get here … I saw the building was ablaze."
Combs said she was especially worried because her daughter has a leg injury. She added the holiday took an unexpected turn for her family.
"The fire is on one end, our unit is on the other end, so not the way I thought I was gonna spend Mother’s Day," Combs said.
No injuries were reported in the fire. Residents said they are grateful everyone survived and hope those affected can recover quickly.
What we don't know:
At this time, it is unknown how many units were impacted and how many residents were displaced.