2 hospitalized following apartment fire in Orange Park

Neighbor tells News4JAX he saw a firefighter carry a young child out of the apartment

2 people hospitalized following apartment fire in Orange Park

ORANGE PARK, Fla. – A person who lives near the apartment that caught fire on Bentwood Lane Monday night told News4JAX that firefighters rescued two people -- and one of them was a young child.

“A firefighter went through the second story window in the bathroom,” said neighbor Gary Nesenoff. “Broke out the window, came out with a child. I don’t know whether the child survived or not.”

We do know that two people have life-threatening injuries. We also noticed black balloons in an apparent memorial at the base of the stairway.

While News4JAX was looking into the fire, a woman identifying herself as the property owner asked us to leave the property.

The cause of the fire is unclear at this time, but other apartments in the four unit building appeared to be okay.

“It was definitely frightening, how fast the building went up,” Nesenoff said. “As cold as it was last night, folks standing out there not scantily dressed, but no jackets and things. It happened very, very fast, within minutes the building went up.”


About the Author:

Scott is a multi-Emmy Award Winning Anchor and Reporter, who also hosts the “Going Ringside With The Local Station” Podcast. Scott has been a journalist for 25 years, covering stories including six presidential elections, multiple space shuttle launches and dozens of high-profile murder trials.