JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — One person is the hospital, and families are left without a home after an apartment fire in the Ortega Farms area of Jacksonville at the Palms at Ortega.
According to Jacksonville Fire and Rescue, a kitchen fire in one unit spread to three other units. Four families could not return to their apartments Thursday.
A witness told First Coast News he was putting his daughter to sleep when he smelled smoke. He came outside, looked downstairs and saw the fire, then immediately called 911.
Another woman said she had to jump off her back patio because fire and smoke were coming from the unit underneath her.
JFRD was able to discover the cause of the fire once it was extinguished.
Captain Eric Prosswimmer said it came from a cooking fire, and the person who set it off told fire rescue what happened.
According to JFRD, the Red Cross assisted eight adults and six kids.
