2 People In Critical Condition After High-Rise Condo Fire In Sunny Isles Beach
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Two people are in critical condition after a fire broke out at a Sunny Isles Beach condo building.
There was a rush of sirens to the Winston Towers Thursday night.
A kitchen fire was burning up the 17th floor – smoke billowing out the windows.
Miami-Dade firefighters had to haul equipment up the stairs to reach the blaze.
"Flames going out of a dark apartment looks like there was nobody in there," said Nelly Jane Selby.
Condo dwellers were ordered out of the building.
"They were giving someone CPR. Someone on the ground on the 16th floor," Selby said.
A total of eight people had to be treated for a variety of ailments.
Four people were treated at the scene, while four others were rushed to the hospital. Two of the people taken to the hospital, one of them elderly, are in critical condition.
Sunny Isles Beach Commissioner Larisa Svechin announced on social media that fire crews got the blaze under control.
For those out on the street with immediate issues, they needed to get back into the building.
"My wife has to change her batteries. She has her batteries are up there," a man told CBS4's Hank Tester.
For others, it was a scary few moments.
"We started smelling smoke and everyone ran out. It was an apartment of the 17th floor. Fire was coming-out of the kitchen window," said Patricia Ferris.
Sabrina Tochin said the apartments were torn up.
"I saw the ceiling and the walls near the house were completely destroyed and water all over the hallway," she said.
Firefighters spent the evening going floor by floor.
Miami-Dade Fire Department spokesperson Felipe Lay said they were making "sure there is no carbon monoxide in the area so the residents can safely stay where they are."