Several families without home after South Milwaukee fire

 

SOUTH MILWAUKEE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Several families are without a home after a massive house fire in South Milwaukee on Saturday.

"I don’t think anybody will be occupying this building for quite some time," said Kurt Egner, the South Milwaukee Fire Department Battalion chief.

The South Milwaukee Fire Department responded to a house fire along 9th and Milwaukee Avenue around 3:20 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 1. Once they arrived on scene and saw the blaze they called for backup. The building is a multi-family home. 

"The size of the structure, the size of the fire, the extent of it on our arrival as well as the shape structure and the number of apartments in the building we escalated our response," said Battalion Chief Egner.

Dozens of first responders worked together to contain the heavy flames and help all of the people out of their home, including a man who was trapped on the second floor.

"We received word that one of the occupants was trapped and could not escape on his own," said Battalion Chief Egner. "Three of the six members on the scene at the time conducted a rescue from the second-floor window."

The man was taken to the hospital, and his condition is unknown at this time.

The property owner tells us five families live in the building, including a man in a wheelchair and she was worried for their safety. Those residents were all able to make it out safely but were heartbroken to see the damage. A cat died in the fire.

The Red Cross is helping the families find shelter.

The cause of this fire has not yet been determined, it is still an active investigation.