ROSS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A grease fire forced the residents of more than a dozen apartments in Ross Township to evacuate their building late Wednesday, officials said.
Firefighters were called to the Perry Arms apartments shortly before midnight.
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"We didn't really think much of it at first, thought it was someone cooking and burned something," said resident Bethany Hallam.
Investigators told Channel 11's Jennifer Tomazic that the fire started in a kitchen after a resident who was cooking fell asleep. One person who lives in that apartment was taken to the hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.
Ken Basaker, the building manager, said that before residents were evacuated some tenants smelled and saw the smoke and tried to get the man out.
"They finally got him to open his door and he was pretty much, at that point, pretty shaken up," said Basaker.
While the fire damage was contained to that unit, charring the walls and floor, there is smoke damage throughout the rest of the building. Twenty-six people who live in 14 apartments were told to leave.
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"All of a sudden we heard police pounding on all the doors," said Hallam.
The Red Cross was helping the affected residents Thursday morning. Building management did not know when the residents would be allowed to return.