OPA-LOCKA, Fla. – The tenants at Lakeview Apartments are now back in their building, celebrating a new start with a little Sunday fun.
"I have hamburger, I have wings, hotdogs, macaroni and cheese, so it's love in the 'hood during disaster time," said Evelyn Carter.
One would never know the charred reminders of a massive blaze still lay just yards away. On Friday, the roof of the complex was covered in smoke and fire.
Related: Residents try to salvage what they can after massive fire
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue confirmed Sunday that the inferno began on a mattress, then spread to the roof. Management told Local 10 News about five or six units are still unlivable, but the majority of residents are now out of the American Red Cross shelter and back in their homes.
"We liked the shelter, but being home is really where you want to be at the end of the day," Khalid Shorter said.
Despite having their apartments back, many of the residents returned to find their units damaged.
"(There was) smoke damage, water damage, people stealing stuff from our house," Humphrey LaCroix said.
But despite their hardships, LaCroix got his family and neighbors to pitch in and make a barbecue dinner for those with nothing to eat.
"Nobody here (is) rich," LaCroix said. "We (aren't) superstars, but it's the little bit we could put together to feed some people."
"We can all learn a lesson from this -- everybody," Andre Joe said.
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