Firefighters Battle 3-Alarm Apartment Fire In Arlington

Follow CBSDFW.COM: Facebook | Twitter

ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) - Several families in Arlington are trying to salvage what they can after a three-alarm blaze at an apartment complex early Tuesday morning. It happened at around 4:00 a.m. at The Trails of River Park complex located along Crescent Drive, just off of Green Oaks Boulevard.

Firefighters arrived to find flames shooting through the apartment building's roof. The fire began on the first floor and quickly spread to the third floor. Crews were able to extinguish the blaze, but not before six units sustained heavy damage. Many other apartment units were damaged by smoke and water.

At least one firefighter had to be treated and sent home for exhaustion.

The blaze left 16 families homeless. They recalled waking up to fire alarms sounding, and the realization that smoke was filling up their apartments. "Unbelievable. Amazed. Surprised," said resident Willie Beard. "I've seen apartment fires before, but first time I actually lived in one."

[tweet https://twitter.com/KristinWeisKRLD/status/661523247511408640]

Carla Walton made extra sure to check on her next-door neighbor because that woman is pregnant. As it turns out, the woman was already on her way to the hospital to have the baby. She too will have to find a new place for her family to live. "Just trying to hold back the tears. It's hard to talk about," said Walton. "I'm just thanking God that I was able to get out, that we are fine."

Families are trying to get back into their apartment units to see if anything could be saved. However, fire officials are unsure if the building is safe. They are still worried about smoldering debris and the possibility of collapsing walls.

Meanwhile, fire investigators are trying to figure out how the fire started. They believe that it began in a downstairs bathroom, but the exact cause is still unknown.