TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa firefighters battled a two-alarm fire at an apartment complex Saturday morning that injured one person and scorched about 20 units.
Tampa Fire Rescue (TFR) responded to the structure fire at the Bay Colony Apartments on the 5000 block of East Colonial Drive at about 3:24 a.m. Firefighters arrived to find a two-story apartment building with heavy smoke and fire showing from a second-floor unit.
TFR says they entered the apartment but had to evacuate the unit as fire conditions worsened.
A second alarm was requested, bringing additional resources to the scene. Crews began extinguishing the fire from the outside using several water hoses and a ladder. The fire was under control within one hour and fifteen minutes, officials said.
Firefighters searched the affected units but didn’t find any residents inside. One person was evaluated on the scene and taken to a local hospital with minor injuries, officials said. No other injuries were reported.
TFR fire investigators were on the scene, and the cause of the fire is under investigation. The fire damaged approximately 20 apartments.
The American Red Cross was requested and worked with families from the affected units.
Pasco County woman trying to rebuild mobile home after hurricanes
"I cried, of course, because I've worked very hard getting it nice, which has been difficult for me since I lost my husband and being alone,” Kelly Welty said.
Welty's mobile home lost its roof during Hurricane Milton. She said it was the only one in the Buena Vista community to get totaled by a tornado.
