Danville firefighters were able to contain a blaze to a small area of Churchill Towers tonight (Sunday, November 30th).
Bill Pickett was on the scene and has the story:
Fire Chief Aaron Marcott says firefighters were alerted about the blaze at the apartment building at 101 East Seminary Street by an automatic alarm system…
{AUDIO: “Firefighters arrived and found a fire actually working on the fifth floor. And so, they upgraded the alarm. So far they’ve pulled out, we know of six residents. They’re still doing some ladder rescues and removals currently from the upper floors of the building.”}
(Danville Police help a resident of the building.)
Chief Marcott was asked whether any residents had been transported to the hospital….
{AUDIO: “Yes, there has been a few transported already to the hospital. I don’t know the extent of the injuries at the moment. Smoke inhalation mostly.”}
There were numerous emergency vehicles on the scene, including ambulances, fire units and police. Two Danville Mass Transit buses were also called to the scene to keep residents warm who had been evacuated from the building.
Chief Marcott says the fire was upgraded to a third alarm, and he explained what that means….
AUDIO: “Ah, it’s fifteen people from off duty coming back into work. From the off-duty shifts – just coming back in.”}
Churchill Towers is a six-story apartment building located across the street north of the Danville Post Office. Firefighters and police helped remove people from the building after the fire was discovered. The cause of the blaze was not immediately determined. The building is managed by the Vermilion Housing Authority.
{Note: Firefighters remained on the scene as this story was posted.}
