Massive fire at Edgewater’s Avalon apartments; hundreds evacuated
JANUARY 21, 2015, 5:51 PM LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 2015, 2:08 AM
BY ABBOTT KOLOFF AND JIM NORMAN
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD
Firefighters battled a five-alarm blaze at an Edgewater apartment complex Wednesday evening, but the advancing flames defied their efforts and destroyed the larger building of the four-story Avalon at Edgewater complex.
There were no deaths or serious injuries in the blaze at 102 Russell Ave., authorities said, but nearly 1,000 people were displaced from their homes.
Photos: Firefighters battle 5-alarm blaze in Edgewater
Police Chief William Skidmore said some people had fallen and suffered minor injuries during the evacuation, and a firefighter had cut a finger.
By 11 p.m., when Edgewater Mayor Michael McPartland announced that the fire was “more or less under control,” the main building in the two-structure complex was completely destroyed, with flames still licking at parts of the skeletal remains and the collapsed debris. When he was asked what he meant, he said the fire was “contained” and that it was no longer spreading.
