One person jumped from a window to escape the flames. At this point, the cause of the fire is unknown.
HOUSTON — The Red Cross is helping residents displaced by a fire that left one man dead and three people injured at a senior living complex in north Houston late Wednesday night.
Family members identified the victim as 74-year-old Rodney Gardner.
The Houston Fire Department said the call came in at 10:51 p.m. for a fire at Independence Hall apartments on Burress Street, near the intersection of Airline and Tidwell. Crews arrived at 10:58 p.m. to find flames engulfing Building 13, which fire officials now say is a total loss.
Firefighters quickly upgraded the call to a 2-alarm fire, knowing the building housed seniors and people with disabilities.
A unit on the second floor was identified as the origin of the fire, and the flames quickly spread to six adjoining units.
Despite facing heavy fire and extreme hoarding conditions, firefighters launched immediate rescue efforts. The primary search was completed by 11:03 p.m., but a body was found during a secondary search at 11:35 p.m.
One of the injured residents reportedly jumped from a window to escape the flames.
Resident Collin Welch, who escaped the fire, said the loss is heartbreaking.
“It’s just sad. I don’t know why this stuff happens,” he said. “No one wants to be homeless, and it’s very unfortunate what happened. I just hope one day stuff gets better here.”
Family members fondly remembered Gardner as the life of the party.
District Chief Russell Christ said the outcome could have been far worse.
“Our heart goes out to the person that did die, but these guys, the people, the firefighters that came here, they saved many because this could’ve been a whole lot worse than what we had,” he said.
In all, 80 firefighters from 15 HFD stations responded, along with 41 pieces of apparatus. No firefighters were hurt.
A METRO bus was brought in to temporarily shelter displaced residents while the American Red Cross Texas Gulf Coast arranged additional assistance.
HFD’s arson division is still investigating the cause of the fire.