NEW ORLEANS — By Thursday morning, the fire trucks and other first responders were gone from the Gentilly Ridge apartments on Chef Menteur Highway.
What remained was a wet, charred mess and questions about what sparked the four-alarm fire -- and what was next for the displaced residents, many of whom said they had nothing left and nowhere to go.
The fire at the apartment complex in the 6000 block of Chef Menteur was reported about 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Images from the NOFD showed what appeared to be flames almost leaping across a courtyard, engulfing both sides of the property.
“It looked like a giant fireball. That’s how it looked,” said Ryan Davenport, a resident of the apartment building. He said he was “blessed” that his was among the units the fire spared.
Sixty firefighters eventually got the fire under control. No injuries were reported, but the NOPD said four officers suffered smoke inhalation after helping residents evacuate the building.
Fire investigators and city code enforcement officers began their search Thursday for answers as to what sparked the fire.
Keith Crawford, one of the building’s owners, says there are 104 units in the building.
“We’re just trying to figure out how many of them were involved in the fire and which ones can be brought back into service and get as many people back as quickly as we can,” he said.
The Red Cross said it was housing at least 70 people in hotels, but the number of people who were displaced could be higher since they are staying with friends or family.
Ronald Clay lost virtually everything. He could easily recount what he had left.
“Three bags of clothes,” he said.
Far more difficult will be figuring out how to move forward.
“All we got is a wing and a prayer. That’s it,” Clay said. “But thank God we (are) safe, though. You know?”
More Stories:
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.
