1 injured, residents displaced in Camden fire

Sunday, March 25, 2018

1 injured in Camden fire. John Rawlins reports during Action News at Noon on March 25, 2018.

CAMDEN (WPVI) -- One person was injured in a two-alarm fire that displaced several residents from their Camden, New Jersey homes.

It happened around 8:20 a.m. Sunday at a boarding home on the 400 block of South 5th Street.

Passerby Ryan Pelikan saw flames shooting from the windows.

"Next thing I know, bunch of firefighters and ambulances came. They were rushing people out of the building. Kids got out safely. It was pretty big flames," Pelikan said.

Arriving firefighters found flames spreading to adjoining houses.

"It went to two alarms because the fire horizontally extended to two other adjacent properties, so they just needed more resources," Camden Fire Chief Michael Harper said.

Most of the fire was concentrated on the second floor of the home.

Firefighters found a man on the third floor. He is in critical condition after suffering from smoke inhalation and an apparent heart attack, officials say.

"One guy went in the ambulance. He wasn't breathing. They were pumping his chest," Pelikan said.

Smoke alarms were going off and people were exiting their homes as firefighters arrived to the scene; officials say some residents were getting ready for church at the time.

Neighbor Mallori Reed says she heard the fire alarm and saw smoke coming from a nearby room.

"It happened so quickly. The lady that's room is next door to ours, her bed caught on fire," Reed said.

Residents from four buildings have been displaced.

Mayor Franko Moran spoke with some of them and says the city is working with the Red Cross to find shelter.

"We will be working collectively with them to make sure they have a warm place to stay temporarily until the investigation is done and something is done with regards to placement," Moran said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation by authorities.

The fire was placed under control by 9 a.m.