5 dead, 4 hospitalized after fire at high-rise apartment building in Cedar-Riverside neighborhood
The fire started in an apartment on the 14th floor of a high-rise apartment building in Cedar-Riverside and it spread to the hallway. (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Five people died and four others were injured, including a firefighter, after a fire broke out on one of the upper floors of a high-rise apartment building in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis early Wednesday morning.
The fire started at 4 a.m. at an apartment building on the 600 block of Cedar Avenue South. The Minneapolis Fire Department said it was quickly upgraded to a 3-alarm fire.
Firefighters located the fire on the 14th floor of the building. It had started in an apartment and spread throughout the 14th floor hallway. Heavy smoke was reported on the floors above the fire.
5 dead, 4 hospitalized after fire at high-rise apartment building in Cedar-Riverside neighborhood
Five people died and four others were injured, including a firefighter, after a fire broke out on one of the upper floors of a high-rise apartment building in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis early Wednesday morning.
Four of the victims were found on the 14th floor and pronounced dead on the scene. The fifth victim was found in a stairway and transported to the hospital, where they later died.
Firefighters evacuated some residents confined to the 14th floor to the 12th floor. They also evacuated some residents from a stairwell. One resident had to be evacuated using the elevator.
Three residents were taken to the hospital for various medical concerns, according to the fire department, as well as one firefighter who suffered a minor injury.
The medical examiner released the identities of the five victims of the fire:
- 32-year-old Tyler Scott Baron
- 59-year-old Jerome Stuart
- 67-year-old Nadifa Mohamud
- 69-year-old Maryan Mohamed Mohamud
- 78-year-old Amatalah Adam
Crews were able to extinguish the fire in approximately 30 minutes.
"It could have been a lot worse," City Councilman Abdi Warsame told FOX 9 "I commend the work of our first responders. Our fire chief did a great job...we're a tight-knit community here in Cedar-Riverside."
Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel said an early investigation into the cause of the fire indicates it was accidental.
Of the 191 units in the building, approximately nine of them have been deemed uninhabitable due to fire or water damage, according to a spokesperson for the Minnesota Public Housing Authority. MPHA will move the displaced residents to open units currently available.
The fire remains under investigation.