Just after midnight on Tuesday, an overnight blaze forced residents out of their two-story apartment building at Gaston Avenue and Munger Boulevard in Old East Dallas.
The Dallas Fire-Rescue Department (DFR) told The Dallas Express that units responded to multiple 911 calls at 12:36 a.m. for a structure fire at The Cornerstone Apartments, located at 5203 Gaston Ave.
When the first responding divisions arrived at the apartment complex, they found the fire already in its advanced stages. The blaze was declared extinguished around 2:30 a.m.
According to DFR, The American Red Cross was called to help residents in need from at least ten apartments. One firefighter was hospitalized after becoming overheated but was later released.
The Dallas Express spoke to Cornerstone Apartments Manager Laura Suarez, who said there were 11 units affected by the fire.
According to WFAA, sources at the scene say it was a woman suffering from smoke inhalation. Still, the DFR noted that a resident was taken to a local hospital for reasons unrelated to the fire.
According to investigators, the reason for the fire was an accident stemming from unattended cooking in the kitchen of a second-floor apartment.
“We [have] just been handing [The American] Red Cross right now. I’m trying to get more help from them because a lot of people did lose everything,” Suarez said.
She added that the City of Dallas told her people were not allowed in the burned structure because it was unsafe. According to Suarez, officials said if there were high winds or rain, parts of the system could collapse.
Suarez said that most of the residents whose homes were burned are staying with relatives or in hotels. She also noted that the hospitalized woman was doing well now, as Suarez had been checking up on her.
Suarez said that she and another resident were knocking on doors to get the other residents out because it was late at night.
“The flames were really going by the time we came out,” Suarez said. She said everything was burned by the fire in one unit, including furniture. “Everything is gone. That’s how bad it got,” she said.