Apartment fire leaves some residents displaced

BROOKSVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) — Residents at Brooksville Manor apartments escaped with the clothes on their back.

A late-night fire guts one apartment and leaves others a complete loss from smoke and water damage.

Daylight shows the damage.

“I’m just hurt, and disappointed,” said Queen Hairston, who lost everything in the fire.

“Well I came home about 10:45 and I kept smelling smoke,” said Hairston. “And I went into the house and started playing games on my phone and the apartment started to get smoke in it, so I said let me get up and go see because something isn’t right.”

Hairston walked outside, and that’s when she saw smoke coming from the top of the building

“So I ran around the corner to get them out of the apartment,” said Hairston. “After I got them out of the apartment, the fire started to shoot up.”

Her neighbors were sleeping, and Hairston may have saved their lives.

“I wasn’t paying attention because it was late, and then she knocked on my window and said the apartment is on fire get out,’ said Lisa Franklin, Hairston’s neighbor. “So I just woke up and grabbed the first thing I saw and I got out. When I got out, my tv started popping and the lights went off”

That’s when the fire started blazing — but Franklin is grateful to be alive and for Hairston.

“We could’ve died like I said I was asleep and didn’t hear anything,” said Franklin. “Smoke alarm didn’t go off, but I thank God for Queen for waking us up.”

Witnesses say they believe the fire started in a vacant apartment.

We will have more information as it becomes available.