Neighbors Bang On Apartment Doors To Warn Residents Of Fire
LITTLETON, Colo. (CBS4)- People in Littleton helped make sure everyone escaped an apartment fire by going door to door, banging on them, warning residents to get out.
The fire started about noon Friday at the Verona Apartments near Belleview Avenue and Federal Boulevard.
The Littleton Fire Chief said the fire started in a vacant bottom unit where maintenance workers had been storing wood doors, paint and varnish. Those items helped fuel the fire and made it difficult to extinguish the blaze.
"I came into the parking lot and pulled the fire alarm and started knocking on people's doors to pull them out," said witness Leonardo Dominguez.
Firefighters were pulled out of the building and continued to fight the fire from the outside because the fire was spreading up from the bottom unit.
"I hear some people yelling, 'Get out, get out, get out!' so I come out the door and I see flames shooting out of the bottom apartment, coming up the stairs and I know the neighbor has pets, so I knocked on her door and nobody answered so I tried kicking it in and couldn't get it to go so I came down the stairs and by then the flames were up, almost knee high," said resident Steve Short.
PHOTO GALLERY: Apartment Fire Images
Everyone escaped without injury but a couple of pets had to be rescued.
The Red Cross is working with about 10 residents who may have to find another place to stay because of the fire damage.