Fire guts Miami Gardens apartment complex, more than 100 residents displaced
MIAMI - Residents of the New World Condo Apartments on Northwest 177th street say what started as a small fire in one unit quickly spread through the second floor and eventually engulfed a large portion of the building.
According to the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, the blaze started around 10:30 a.m. in one of the units on the second floor, but because of windy conditions, the fire quickly spread. Part of the building's roof collapsed.
Residents panicked, some jumping out of windows to escape.
Shenell Walker, who lost practically everything, said, "I walked outside to the end of the building and I looked up and that's when I saw the fire coming out of the building and I finally understood what they were saying, They were saying call 911 and I went back in and told my kids that there's a fire and we all ran outside and you know, everyone was trying to get everyone out of the building."
At least 75 units were impacted by the fire, about half of them destroyed and at least 105 people are displaced.
There were no deaths or injuries reported.
The Red Cross and the Homeless Trust are working with those impacted as they navigate the next steps.
Officials are still investigating what caused the fire and are looking into if recent roof renovations had anything to do with the spread.