MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A three-alarm fire gutted an apartment complex near Miami Gardens Wednesday displaced more than 30 people including children.
Lt. Felipe Lay, a spokesman for Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, said the blaze broke out about 12:45 p.m. at the Star Lakes Apartments on Northeast Second Avenue near 193rd Street in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade County.
Lay said the fire quickly spread to an attic space shared by several units, which made the fire difficult to contain. Several residents were unaware the two-story building was on fire and firefighters and neighbors went door-to-door alert them.
James Stephenson rushed in from across the street to make sure people got out safely.
"You could see the flames. You could feel the flames right across the street," Stephenson said.
Lay said investigators are still trying to determine what caused the fire and where it started. No one was hurt in the blaze. Lay said.
The Red Cross was on hand to assist residents displaced by the fire. It was unclear how many people were displaced by the fire.
But at least one resident remained positive despite the damage.
"You know what? It’s just material things. And where there is life there is hope," Sylvia Francois, one of the residents. "And I trust God. And he’s a God who loves and restores."