BELLEVUE, Wash. — Flames erupted from a Bellevue apartment complex on Tuesday afternoon, prompting a three-alarm response from local firefighters.
The fire began shortly before 3 p.m. near the 15200 block of NE 16th Place, according to the Bellevue Fire Department. Fire crews rescued a person from a third floor unit.
“It was scary, it was really scary. This is the first time I saw this horrible of a fire in my life so I’m really scared,” said Maneesha Nandwana, who lives behind the building that burned Tuesday.
“So many apartments are burned I can’t even explain how I’m feeling about it. I’m getting goosebumps talking about it,” Nandwana said.
Twenty-one units were destroyed. The building has 56 units.
Power was cut off to an additional 30 units in a nearby building.
Jayne Star came home from work to find fire crews at her apartment building. Her apartment wasn’t on fire but her building was, she was scared because the dog she recently rescued was inside and without question went in to get her.
“I just wanted to make sure my dog was OK. When you have a loved one in a predicament like this you don’t think about anything but making sure they’re safe and that’s all that matters,” Star said.
No injuries or fatalities have been reported and no one had to be transferred to the hospital, according to the fire department.
Bellevue Fire Cares, made up of social workers responded to help those displaced get connected to resources like the Red Cross.
“Many of these families are large extended families who live in a unit and multigenerational with a lot of young children,” Natasha Grossman, Program Manager Bellevue Fire Cares.
Grossman said their team can help translate for families.
“We do have social workers who speak Spanish so even getting people to be able to talk to them in Spanish and be able to hear what they need and give them information about what is happening is helpful,” Grossman said.
The Red Cross evacuation center is located at Overlake Park Presbyterian Church. There are cots, food and other urgently needed resources there.
The fire's cause has not yet been determined.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.