Work crews are already starting to demolish an apartment building on University Avenue in St. Paul that had a fire break out inside it early Wednesday morning.
Deputy Fire Chief Roy Mokosso says a woman who lived in a second-floor apartment called 911 to report the fire, saying it was in her unit.
The woman was able to evacuate her apartment from a window and made her way onto a roof. She then fled to safety after a neighbor helped her down with a ground ladder.
That woman spoke to WCCO-TV about the incident through an interpreter, saying, “She’s very, very grateful” that she got out safely.
At one point, firefighters were trying to save the building, but conditions changed, and they were all called outside.
The deputy chief says one firefighter in the basement had trouble getting out and called a mayday. They were able to help him escape the blaze.
“To my understanding, the firefighters that were fighting the fire in the basement…The difficulty they had with getting out was because some stuff had shifted, covering their handlines and also closing the door behind them,” Mokosso said during a press conference.
Mokosso went on to say that a mayday being called was “significant,” but they are “very fortunate that no firefighters were injured during this.”
The building is a total loss, and traffic near the area is being affected as they tear down the building.