HARTFORD, Wis. — A Hartford family is searching for a new home after escaping an apartment fire that displaced 12 people over the weekend.
Janelle Stoltz said the fire spread within seconds after her daughter Kaylee woke up to her blanket and bed on fire early Saturday morning.
Family escapes Hartford fire, now searching for a new home
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Washington County
1 injured, 12 displaced in 8-unit apartment building fire in Hartford
“It was seconds,” Janelle said. “Kaylee woke up to her blanket on fire, and she yelled ‘fire’ and woke everybody up.”
Kaylee said she woke up feeling like she was being burned and saw flames in front of her face. She suffered burns to her left leg but said they were not serious.
“It’s terrifying,” Kaylee said. “If I didn’t wake up when I did, I might have not been here, or I might have not been able to wake everybody else up.”
Janelle said she rushed her four children and pets to safety. A cat that remained inside was later rescued by firefighters.
Janelle said she, her children and police officers also knocked on neighbors’ doors in an effort to get others out before smoke overtook the building.
Hartford Fire & Rescue said firefighters were called to the apartment building on Evergreen Drive around 12:59 a.m. Saturday. Police officers arriving at the scene found fire coming from a first-floor apartment window. The fire quickly spread up the exterior of the building toward the apartment above and into the soffit and attic.
GOFUNDME: https://www.gofundme.com/f/helping-elises-family-rebuild-after-the-fire?cp_src=d
Three people trapped on a second-floor balcony jumped from the smoke-filled building and were caught by police officers below, according to fire officials. Firefighters eventually located the fire in a bedroom of the first-floor apartment and extinguished it.
Twelve people were displaced from the eight-unit building, and 10 pets were rescued. One occupant suffered minor injuries and declined transportation to a hospital. Two Hartford police officers were evaluated at a hospital for smoke-related injuries and released.
Janelle said the family is now looking for another apartment and trying to replace clothing, furniture and basic necessities.
A friend of the family started a GoFundMe to help Janelle and her children with food, clothing, housing, furniture and other needs as they rebuild.
Despite what the family lost, Janelle said she is focused on what they still have.
“The items can be replaced,” she said. “But, you know, I’m so thankful that they’re alive. Our animals are alive, and that’s what matters.”
Fire officials said the cause of the fire remains under investigation.
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