Katrina survivor among apartment fire victims

[TexasStooge]

By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - One young school teacher who escaped Hurricane Katrina could be one among 50 residents to lose her belongings after an apartment fire Monday afternoon at the River Hill complex at Post and Paddock.

Fire investigators warned residents that the large apartment building that burned in the fire could collapse at anytime.

Twenty-four units were damaged or destroyed in the fire and officials said the building wasn't safe enough for investigators to get inside to look for the cause of the blaze.

People inside the burning building had little time to grab anything and authorities said residents may not be able to go back inside to salvage any of their belongings.

Katrina survivor Antwinette Lewis, 24, was watching television when the fire broke out and she found herself once again in an evacuation situation.

"...Someone yelled fire [and] I ran out of my apartment," she said. "I looked and saw flames."

Lewis escaped from the 9th ward after the levees broke in New Orleans in August after the hurricane hit.

"I lived on the second floor there also," she said. "So, I got everything out of my apartment from New Orleans and brought everything here."

However, Lewis was told she might not be able to gather her belongings this time because of the damage done to the building.

Firefighters had already faced a close call just moments after they arrived.

"They were on the breezeways up on the 3rd floor when the collapse happened," said Battalion Chief Bill Murphy, Grand Prairie Fire Department. "...Another 10 feet either way and they would have been caught in the collapse."

In addition to fire damage, the weight of all the water used to douse the fire added about 400,000 pounds of weight, which caused the building to buckle.

While many belongings were left behind, firefighters said they believe they saved all but one pet.

Lewis was able to save a few items as well.

"I have a bag of jeans and my college diploma [but] that's about it," she said.

Apartment managers said they will find units for all the victims and the Red Cross has stepped in to help with food and clothing.