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Mableton apartment fire displaces 14 people
A grease fire is to blame for leaving 14 people homeless in Mableton on Easter Sunday, firefighters say.
MABLETON, Ga. - Update: According to the management company for Upland Townhomes, the fire only impacted three residents who have been relocated to a hotel provided by the Red Cross. The remaining units in the building were deemed safe to return to by the fire department. The management company is in the process of preparing three units for the displaced residents to move into.
ORIGINAL STORY
An apartment fire in Mableton on Easter Sunday left more than a dozen residents without a home. Fire officials believe the fire started in the kitchen.
The call came to 911 around 9 a.m. about a fire at the Upland Townhomes in the 6800 block of Mableton Parkway.
Curlee Richardson looked outside her home nd saw smoke billowing from a building next door.
Firefighters believe a grease fire was the cause of an apartment blaze which left 14 people homeless in Mableton on March 31, 2024. (Cobb County Fire & Emergency Services)
"It was just a very sad scene. I had never seen a fire of this magnitude so close," Richardson said.
"I was doing a lot of praying, just for the families, hoping that no one was still inside. I was also praying for the firefighters who were risking their lives trying to save these families and put out the fire," she added.
Fire officials say a resident inside the unit where the fire broke out tried to use a fire extinguisher before crews arrived.
Firefighters believe a grease fire was the cause of an apartment blaze which left 14 people homeless in Mableton on March 31, 2024. (Cobb County Fire & Emergency Services)
"They were able to get the fire contained to just one unit out of the 10 that are in that row. And then, there were two other units that received some smoke damage, and those folks will be displaced," Nicholas Danz of Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services said.
"The fire started in one, what we believe to be possibly a grease fire, unattended cooking fire. Very common, unfortunately, sometimes around the holidays when we're cooking and busy at the same time," he added.
The Red Cross is helping the 14 residents now without a home. Fire officials say smoke alarms in the buildings helped everyone get out safely.
Firefighters believe a grease fire was the cause of an apartment blaze which left 14 people homeless in Mableton on March 31, 2024. (Cobb County Fire & Emergency Services)
"Obviously, not the way you want to start out Easter morning, but we're thankful the smoke alarms worked," Danz explained.
"Smoke alarms save lives. So that early detection, early warning caused an evacuation, those folks were able to get out quickly," he added.