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Apartment Fire Relocates Residents One Day before Thanksgiving

Posted/updated on: November 29, 2014 at 5:10 am
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vlcsnap_2014_11_26_17h38m35s124LONGVIEW — At least six fire trucks were on the scene around 7:30 Wednesday morning when flames broke out at Longview’s Pine Knoll Apartment complex. Fire Marshal Johnny Zackary said the fire started in an upstairs unit of building three, the result of an unattended candle. Pine Knoll resident Chris Kemper tells KETK he learned of the fire when police beat on his door. Police evacuated all residents and their pets, and no injuries were reported. Kemper said his apartment did sustain smoke damage, but without the efficiency of the fire and police departments it could have been worse. “I don’t think there was any flame damage or any water damage, just a bunch of smoke, and I believe that’s completely because of the quick response of the Longview Fire Department,” Kemper said.

Although the flames were contained to about two units, all 16 apartments in the building sustained at least some damage by smoke or water. Zackary said the apartment complex is so large that the fire department had to call in reinforcement from other cities. “We did have several neighboring agencies come in and backfill our stations to make sure we had enough coverage for the rest of the city,” Zackary said. He added the apartment complex does not have a sprinkler system, causing the fire to spread much more rapidly.

Kemper says one piece of good news for the residents is that all residents are required to have renter’s insurance. Despite the damage to his apartment, he says he still has something to be thankful for the day before Thanksgiving. “I’m safe. All the residents, the neighbors, and my friends are all safe, and I guess in terms of that, that’s as much to be thankful for as anyone can ask.”

The managers of Pine Knoll immediately went to work to relocate residents whose apartments were damaged. Property owner Ian Mattingly said all residents would have roofs over their heads by the end of the day. Six of the units will be repaired shortly, and the other ten had more extensive damage and will take longer to repair, Mattingly said.



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