5 jump from balconies, 6 rescued by ladder after apartment fire near Fond du Lac and Bourbon
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A large apartment building near Fond du Lac and Bourbon in Milwaukee caught fire early Friday, May 1, sending 11 people scrambling to escape, according to the Milwaukee Fire Department.
Firefighters responded at around 3 a.m. and found fire on the first and second floors. Five occupants jumped from second-floor balconies and were transported to a hospital. Six others were rescued from the building using ladders.
Multiple families were displaced, according to the Red Cross, including about 20 people and pets who are being provided emergency shelter. They say eight units of the 46-unit complex were most heavily damaged.
We spoke with a man who lives at the apartment complex. He wasn't home when the fire started, but got back around 8 a.m., shocked by the damage. He says he's helping other neighbors clear out their belongings, despite his own space being damaged, too.
"My unit is tore up," resident Devan Bush said. "Just trashed it, everything, the whole building."
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.