SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Some University of Central Florida students will have to stay in temporary housing after a three-alarm fire damaged their apartments Sunday.
Crews battled the blaze for hours at the Tivoli Apartments near UCF.
Seminole County Fire Rescue officials said one building in the complex near McCulloch Road caught fire, and they were able to keep the flames from jumping to the other buildings.
Photos: Building at Tivoli Apartments catches fire
Eight buildings were evacuated while firefighters worked to put out the fire.
"Flames two stories high coming off the top. I thought the whole apartment complex was going to burn down," said student Alan Bush. "Thanks to the students. I know that there were at least five or six of them that were running knocking on people's doors, just making sure that we were all evacuated."
Two firefighters were taken to a local hospital and 75 residents were displaced, officials said.
"A lot of us probably don't have renter's insurance just because you have to buy that on your own," resident Hunter Caulder said. "College kids don't think about that kind of stuff."
The Red Cross and UCF are partnering to provide the residents housing.
"About 25, we processed last night, and of those 25, about 10 of them chose to stay in other student housing on campus," said Mark Schlueb, of UCF.
Residents were allowed to return to the buildings that weren't damaged, officials said.
Fire officials are surveying the building to see whether it's safe for firefighters to go in and try to retrieve items that belong to students and residents.
Many students said that without renters insurance, everything they had was gone.
Others stayed with family while some found housing by the Red Cross, which is also providing assistance.
"The Red Cross responds to fires and other disasters like this all the time and is able to provide some financial assistance to help with those belongings," said Schlueb.
Several students lost their text books in the fire, and because they're in the middle of midterms, UCF officials are now working with the book store and professors to make the proper accommodations for them.
The cause of the fire has not been determined.
WFTV
