TOLEDO, Ohio — New information was released Tuesday regarding the March 31 fire at Tanglewood Apartments in south Toledo that destroyed the building and left dozens homeless.
Toledo Fire Investigators said they began their investigation in the early stages of the fire at the 5900 block of Cresthaven Lane and continued for several days.
Investigators said the cause of the fire was accidental. The origin of the fire had not been determined as of Tuesday. The investigation will remain in an open status in the event that new information pertaining to the fire becomes available.
The initial 911 caller at 3:09 p.m. said that there was a fire on a balcony of a three-story apartment complex and they were attempting to evacuate. At 3:12 p.m., the first arriving engine company reported heavy smoke and fire showing.
Battalion Chief 2 assumed command and at 3:14 p.m. requested a second alarm complement - doubling the resources for this incident.
In the early stages of the incident evacuation of the complex was the top priority as crews searched unaffected apartments, with all residents finally accounted for at approximately 5:30 p.m., investigators said.
The report notes the wind-driven fire progressed rapidly with crews attempting an aggressive interior attack along with trench cuts made in the roof to stop the fire from moving to unaffected areas. At 4:27 p.m. the fast-moving fire forced the incident commander to initiate emergency traffic having all firefighters evacuate the structure.
After further assessment and risk analysis, a second attempt was made to stop the fire by moving attack crews back into interior units further down from the fast-moving fire.
At 5:02 p.m. a collapse of the roof structure occurred causing the incident commander to initiate emergency traffic for a second time ordering all firefighters to evacuate the building as interior firefighting operations could not stop the rapid-fire spread and posed a serious life safety issue for firefighters operating within the structure.
A defensive position was then taken on the exterior of the building with a priority put on stopping the fire from spreading to adjacent buildings.
The involved apartment complex contained 16 units, 14 of which were occupied leaving approximately 30 residents displaced.
Several community agencies responded to the scene including TARTA, which provided a bus for residents to shelter in during the initial stages of the incident. The Red Cross also responded to the scene and immediately assisted 14 families with monetary funds, supplemental housing, food, and clothing. They also are continuing to work with the families to connect them with other community partners who are providing additional resources.
