Apartment complex fire
IRVING - Investigators are working to find the cause of a fire that destroyed multiple units at an apartment complex located in the 3800 block of North O'Connor Road in Irving.
The fire, which destroyed an apartment building in the heart of the complex, began around 4 a.m. and continued to burn until firefighters were able to get the fire under control at about 6:50 a.m. At least 15 apartments were damaged in the fire.
The battle to extinguish the blaze began with a rough start when firefighters discovered the complex's water source had little to no pressure. While residents were evacuated, firefighters dragged hoses across the street to find a source of water to battle the flames.
"We'll have the fire investigator come out here and look at that," said Asst. Chief Rusty Wilson, Irving Fire Department. "As far as the pressure, I don't have those amounts. We're in the initial stages of the investigation now."
Several residents also said their smoke alarms never went off.
"My dog woke me up," said Patricia Roffe, a resident at the complex. "I was asleep and she woke me up."
Roffe said she barely escaped her first-floor apartment before flames destroyed her entire building.
"I literally walked out with a pair of jeans and a sweater on - no shoes, no socks, nothing," she said.
One resident, who said he has lived at the complex for over 10 years, claimed there have been at least three fires since he has lived there.
No one was injured in the fire.
E-mail cvega@wfaa.com
