A small fire and a lot of smoke in a Fenton-area apartment building caused the evacuation of 40 people Wednesday evening (March 23).
Saline Valley Fire Protection District firefighters evacuated 36 apartments in the Autumn Ridge apartment complex, 190 Stillbrook Estates Drive, after smoke filled the building, Fire Chief Bob Dunn said.
“A fire had started between the exterior brick wall and a child’s bedroom wall,” he said. “There was very little actual fire, but a tremendous amount of smoke.”
Firefighters received the call at 5 p.m. and arrived at 5:12 p.m.
Dunn said finding the fire was difficult.
“It was a bit of a challenge especially the way it was burning,” he said. “The heaviest smoke was in the attic and the third floor. It appeared there was a fire in the attic and we stretched a line (hose) to attack it from there,” he said.
However, it turned out there was no fire in the attic.
Smoke filled apartments on three floors and four to five firefighters were on each floor “banging on doors” to evacuate residents. They checked each hallway and every apartment to find the fire, Dunn said.
Eventually, firefighters used a thermal camera from the exterior to find the fire, Dunn said.
“Three engine companies (crews) removed the drywall in the child’s bedroom and extinguished the fire,” he said.
The fire was so small it took only about 20 gallons of water to put it out, Dunn said.
Firefighters also removed drywall from the ceiling of the room because they were unsure how much the fire had spread or how much of the building was damaged.
Crowds of spectators gathered on the grounds of the large apartment complex while firefighters were at work. The number of people swelled to as many as 150, but there were no problems, Dunn said.
“They were great. We had very few problems keeping people back,” he said. “Sometimes it can be a challenge. People mean well, but they want to know what’s going on. The people here were fantastic. They gave us room to let us do our job.”
Firefighters had the fire extinguished by 6 p.m. but were on the scene until 8:10 p.m., he said.
Residents from all but three apartments were allowed to return to their homes.
The American Red Cross assisted the woman who lived in the apartment where the fire was found behind the wall, and she planned to stay with family. The two other families were not at home at the time of the incident, Dunn said.
The rest of the building had light smoke damage, he said.
Dunn said the fire started in a hole cut in the brick of the building to connect an air conditioning unit. Saline Valley is investigating the cause of the fire, Dunn said.
“We are confident this was an accidental fire,” he said.
The Fenton, High Ridge, Rock Community, Mehlville, and Valley Park fire protection districts assisted Saline Valley with the call.
There were no reports of any injuries, Dunn said.