Rosana Hughes, John Spink
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
(TNS)
Officials confirmed multiple people have been taken to the hospital and some remain unaccounted for after a home in South Fulton went up in flames Wednesday morning, the coldest the area has seen since March.
South Fulton crews were dispatched to the two-story home in the 7200 block of Oswego Trail shortly before 5 a.m. and reported multiple people were trapped inside, the fire department said. Those who were taken to the hospital were said to be stable, department spokesperson Lt. Eric Jackson told reporters. It’s not clear if those who remain unaccounted for were home at the time, Jackson said.
The house was fully engulfed by the time firefighters arrived a few minutes after the 911 call came in, he said. They had to attack the fire from the outside as the roof began to cave in and its floors and stairwell collapsed.
Family member Tyrone Oliver feared the worst for his loved ones. He said at least seven people lived in the house, including his child and the child’s mother, and four or five of them were home when the fire broke out.
“I’m traumatized. I’m stunned. I don’t know what to say,” he told reporters at the scene. He was concerned that a faulty electrical outlet was to blame.
Jackson could not confirm what caused the fire, as it remains under investigation and crews were having to ensure that the structure was stable before entering.
A tearful neighbor, Leonard Varnes, said his alarm clock had just gone off at 5 a.m. when he heard the fire truck sirens approaching.
“When I went to the door, it was just lit up,” he recalled. “I said, ‘Oh, my God,’ and I ran out.”
A little girl who lives in the destroyed house was just playing with Varnes’ son the day before, he said.
“Every day, he goes over there and gets ‘em as soon as he gets home,” he said, his voice full of emotion.
It was the third large fire crews have had to battle in the Atlanta area this week, all three taking place on the coldest nights of the season so far.
On Monday, two fires broke out at vacant buildings in Midtown and Peoplestown. While both remain under investigation, people seeking warmth were suspected to have caused both, according to Atlanta fire officials. No injuries were reported in either fire, but thousands of residents were left without power in Midtown.
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