ORLANDO, Fla. — Several families are homeless following a two-alarm fire in Altamonte Springs late Monday night on Ballard Street.
A woman and her baby were hospitalized after they were rescued from the fire at the Charter Pointe apartments on Ronald Reagan Boulevard, fire officials said.
The fire started in a downstairs apartment and spread to seven other units, authorities said. A 911 caller said a lamp sparked and the fire destroyed several units.
"It wasn't like a normal scream like my stuff is burning. It was more like come help me I'm burning type of scream. It was a blood curdling scream," resident Brandon Paul said.
The caller said she was concerned for a mother and her baby in the unit above because she wasn't sure if they could see anything because smoke had gotten thick and black.
"I'm up here with my baby. Please get me out of here," the woman can be heard saying in the 911 call. "The closet, the lamp, it's a tall lamp and it fell in the closet and now my whole closet it on fire and there's a whole bunch of black smoke coming out and there's people on top of me.
I'm scared"
"The cops came and knocked on the doors and we all just ran out," resident Erica Schmutz said.
Officials said a firefighter and a police officer were sent to the hospital with minor injuries. The police officer was released, but the firefighter wasn't. However, he is expected to be fine.
The husband of the woman who was hospitalized, Alex Yipying, spoke with Channel 9 Tuesday.
"I need to get my personal items and then I need to try to see about the well-being of my child and wife," Yipying said.
The cause of the fire in unknown, but officials have ruled out someone lighting the fire.