DETROIT – An early morning fire in an east side apartment complex may have been caused by residents using stoves to heat their apartments, according to the Detroit Fire Department.
The fire department was called to the complex on Seven Mile Road, between Hoover Street and Outer Drive at about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday.
ORIGINAL STORY: Residents using stoves for heat likely cause of apartment building fire on Detroit’s east side
Residents of the apartment complex said the fire would not have happened if the heat was working properly.
Mohamed said his niece lives in the apartment that caught fire and she, her nearly 3-year-old daughter and boyfriend were inside. They were all taken to a hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.
“They’re OK. They’re walking,” Mohamed said.
Residents said it wasn’t that heating bills weren’t paid, but that the original landlords had passed away recently and the people in charge would not fix their heat.
“The heat has been working ineffectively,” said one resident. “We’ve been complaining, telling them it’s been cold. I personally told them today that the apartments are cold and I was told we had to get blankets because everyone was cold.”
One resident said that nearly everyone in the complex have been sleeping with their stoves on to keep warm.
“It’s cold like it is outside,” said one resident. “You can see your breath in your apartment unit. It’s cold. It’s that cold.”