Midlothian Fire Displaces Several Apartment Residents

(STMW) -- A fire in a south suburban Midlothian apartment building left 16 residents without shelter Wednesday morning.

Crews were called to the building in the 14600 block of Keystone Avenue in Midlothian for reports of a structure fire at 2:20 a.m., Midlothian Fire Department Deputy Chief Dave Mager told a reporter at the scene.

Police arrived at the scene first and began waking up residents to get them out of the building, Mager said.

"They saved our life," resident Lataura Green said at the scene.

When fire crews arrived, they found heavy smoke coming from a third-floor apartment, according to Mager. They extinguished the fire a short time later, and fire damage was limited to the apartment where it started.

However, water damage to the units underneath and smoke damage throughout rendered the six-unit building uninhabitable, displacing 16 residents, Mager said. The American Red Cross was helping the displaced residents find shelter.

No injuries were reported in the fire.