Flames tore through a three-story apartment building on East Bel Air Avenue in Aberdeen late Tuesday night, forcing firefighters to pull two trapped residents from an upper-floor balcony before smoke and fire damage left 28 people without homes. No residents or firefighters were hurt, but two cats did not survive the blaze.
The fire broke out shortly before 10:45 p.m. Tuesday at 48 E. Bel Air Ave., according to dailyvoice.com, with the Aberdeen Fire Department logging its response to the building at about 10:42 p.m., per foxbaltimore.com. Firefighters arrived to find flames shooting from a first-floor window, the outlet reported, a detail that matches what WMAR 2 News described as flames shooting out of a first-floor window when crews responded to the unit block of East Bel Air Avenue.
Two people trapped on an upper floor were pulled to safety during the response, though accounts differ on exactly where. WMAR 2 News reported firefighters rescued the pair by pulling them from a second-floor balcony, while Fox Baltimore's report described two individuals being rescued from an upper-floor balcony. Dailyvoice.com, meanwhile, reported that two occupants and their pet were brought to safety from the third floor.
Smoke Forced Entire Building to Empty Out
According to dailyvoice.com's report, the fire itself was contained to the kitchen of a lower-level apartment, but smoke and soot spread throughout the three-story building. That damage, combined with the fire response, forced crews to clear everyone out of the building, WMAR 2 News reported. In the end, 20 adults and eight children were displaced, per dailyvoice.com.
Roughly 50 firefighters responded to what was classified as a one-alarm fire, and the same report states crews brought it under control in about 10 minutes. The building was not equipped with a fire alarm or sprinkler system, though its smoke alarms did activate, according to the outlet. Estimated damage from the fire reached around $500,000, Fox Baltimore reported.
Pets Lost, No Injuries to People
Two cats did not survive the fire, dailyvoice.com reported, even as officials confirmed no residents or firefighters were injured. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, according to WMAR 2 News.
Tuesday's fire follows earlier multi-unit blazes in Harford County. A fire at a three-story apartment building on Raven Wood Court in nearby Belcamp, reported around 2:30 a.m., led firefighters to rescue two people and displaced several other residents, according to wbaltv.com; one apartment unit there was destroyed while others suffered flame, smoke and water damage. A two-alarm condo fire in Bel Air separately left 26 people displaced and required 75 firefighters from multiple companies to contain, per WBAL-TV, which reported that fire left one building a total loss and condemned another nearby.
