FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The American Red Cross is assisting three adults and five children who were displaced from their home in Fort Lauderdale Wednesday morning after a fire broke out.
The fire was reported around 5:40 a.m. in the 3000 block of Northwest 17th Street.
“Flames -- flames and panic. The kids were just running up and down the street,” one neighbor who called 911 said. “Just seeing children in distress, you know, is a little disturbing.”
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Garrett Pingol said firefighters arrived to find heavy smoke and flames coming from the single-story home.
“They did encounter heavy hoarder type of conditions, meaning there was a lot of personal belongings in the home that impeded some of the progress,” he said. “But luckily, they were able to make a quick attack on the fire and knock it down.”
Pingol confirmed that one adult was transported to Broward Health Medical Center, but the extent of their injuries was not released.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.