Another Fire...

Another fire today. Here's the article in the paper:

Copyright 2005 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
April 11, 2005 Monday

Fire at Duluth apartments leaves 31 people homeless by JOHN GHIRARDINI
A Sunday morning blaze at a Duluth apartment complex left 31 people homeless, fire officials said. No injuries were reported.

The fire broke out about 10:09 a.m. in a wall between two units of a three-story, 20-unit building at the Arbors at Breckenridge, said Fire Department spokesman Thomas Rutledge. The building already had been evacuated before firefighters from nearby Station 5 arrived at 10:10 to find heavy smoke and fire pouring from the attic. The fire at one point broke through the roof, Rutledge said, causing a partial collapse at the corner of the building.

"[Firefighters] did a good job of keeping it from running across the attic," he said.The top two units where the fire began were destroyed. Several other units sustained smoke and water damage, and two others had holes knocked in ceilings and walls.The fire was determined to be accidental, Rutledge said, though no specific cause has been blamed officially.
Displaced residents said they were told electrical wiring was the culprit. Apartment management declined to comment.

Many displaced residents were members of an extended Pakistani family, said Andy Ali, whose apartment suffered smoke damage. Ali was on his way back from Alabama when a relative called him about the fire."It's not even my fault," he said. "What are we supposed to do?"

"The Red Cross will provide shelter for the nine affected families until they can
move back in or find other apartments",

said Hal Simmons, head of the organization's Disaster Relief Team responding to the call.

"The Red Cross was there within an hour and did a tremendous job,"

Rutledge said.

I am not sure how many readers I get to this blog, but if you are interested in volunteering - here's a brief description of a Disaster Team Volunteer:

Disaster Action Team (DAT) Volunteers Every day of the year, 24 hours a day, the American Red Cross is there for you whenever disaster strikes to provide food, clothing, shelter, medications, and encouragement to face the future. More than 65 Disaster Action Team (DAT) volunteers made this assistance possible within Gwinnett County this past year. They responded to 136 disasters (mostly home fires) and assisted 516 individuals with emergency needs. All you have to do is click here http://www.redcross.org/.

What have you done today to make yourself proud?