NORTH MIAMI, FLA. (WSVN) - Sixteen people have been displaced in North Miami after their apartment building caught fire.
On Friday morning, 14 Miami-Dade Fire Rescue crews responded to the blaze along the 700 block of Northeast 128th Street.
When crews arrived, they found smoke coming from a single-story apartment building.
“They faced heavy smoke from all sides of the building,” said MDFR Division Chief Marc Chavers.
The flames forced five families out onto the street as smoke filled their homes. According to MDFR, the families were displaced from the five-unit apartment complex.
No injuries have been reported.
Residents told 7News that the fire started in the building’s meter room. 7News cameras captured how the area was burned as a result of the fire.
“I don’t know where to go,” said resident Mesly Cherydant.
Cherydant said she had already left for work when he got the frantic call from his wife who said they were woken up by a strange noise.
“She just called me at 6:30, she says the house has a fire, so when I say, ‘What happened,’ she opened the window and she could see the fire in the back and when I come, I see the fire in my apartment, in the back of my apartment,” he said.
Now, these families are trying to figure out their next steps
One family member affected, Starah Gabaud, said she left her family’s home as quickly as she could when she saw the smoke and flames.
“It was so scary. We didn’t have sandals on; we just ran and went across the street,” she said.
As the families watched fire crews battling the flames, they knew their lives had forever changed.
“It was like we was losing everything,” said Gabaud. “We thought we was going to be, like, with nothing left.”
Gabaud said her family had more luck than some of their neighbors.
“Just the light burn, so we can save everything,” she said.
But neighbors like Cherydant were not as lucky.
“I lost my bed, my clothes, so many things inside the home, everything lost,” said Cherydant.
Volunteers with the American Red Cross are providing temporary assistance to the families impacted by the fire.
Gabaund said she and her family will be living in a shelter until another apartment is found.
7News also reached out to the building’s landlord, who said he is assisting the families that have been displaced.
If you are interested in helping out, you can donate to the local red cross.
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