Detroit Apartment Building Fire Injures 11, Displaces 20

DETROIT (AP) — About a dozen people were hurt in an apartment building fire early Friday morning on Detroit’s west side.

Twenty people were displaced and 11 people suffered injuries including smoke inhalation, bumps and bruises, Fire Chief James Harris told reporters.

The blaze was reported around 3:30 a.m. It left the five-story building heavily damaged.

At least some sections of the building’s roof appeared to have collapsed. Harris described the building as a “total loss,” meaning it’s uninhabitable.

Most of the building’s residents were taken to a nearby recreational center where the Red Cross was providing help.

Betty Smith told the Detroit Free Press that smoke alarms woke her up. She escaped her first-floor apartment with nothing but her dog and the clothes she was wearing.

“There’s no coming back from this. Just have to tough it out,” Smith said while sitting on a bench outside the recreation center.

The cause of the fire was under investigation Friday morning.

Top photo: Detroit firefighters aim water on hot spots as they battle a large fire in Detroit, Friday, April 7, 2023. About a dozen people have been hurt in an early morning apartment building fire on Detroit’s westside. (Andy Morrison /Detroit News via AP)