Fire in high-rise apartment in North Bergen for seniors kills elderly man and woman
A third person was taken to the hospital in stable condition. Two police officers were also being treated for injuries.
NORTH BERGEN, New Jersey (WABC) -- Two elderly people died in a fire in a high-rise building for seniors in North Bergen, New Jersey.
The fire broke out in a 10th floor apartment in the Cullum Apartments, a 16-story building on Grand Avenue, just before 1:30 a.m. Thursday.
Firefighters arrived to flames blowing out the windows, and when they made their way into the apartment, they found 88-year-old Reynaldo Tatis and a 72-year-old unidentified woman dead.
They are believed to be members of the same family.
Another resident was taken to the hospital in stable condition.
Two police officers who were among the first to arrive were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
"I was going to sleep and my mom called me to say everything was on fire," a resident's daughter said. "I came here and everyone was crying and panicked, they had to take everybody to the basement."
The fire took at least an hour to get under control.
The deputy fire chief said the fire started in a single unit and was mainly contained to that unit.
Residents of 24 apartments were displaced by the fire. The property, which is run by North Bergen Housing Authority, is working with the Red Cross to find housing the displaced residents.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Another fire in the same building in 2002 claimed the life of a 71-year-old woman.
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