Residents displaced by apartment fire near Okolona Christmas night sort through damage

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A fire ripped through a Louisville apartment building Christmas night, leaving multiple families displaced but unharmed.

The fire happened just after 9 p.m. Wednesday at a complex on Lipps Lane, off Preston Highway and south of Fern Valley Road.

Fire officials said the fire originated from a faulty heater in one of the units, sending smoke billowing through the building, triggering smoke alarms and alerting residents.

"Because of the age of this building, it's not required to have a sprinkler system," Frankie Nalley, with the Okolona Fire protection District said.

At the time, a MetroSafe supervisor told WDRB when firefighters arrived, flames were reportedly coming through the roof of the building.

Thursday, residents were sorting through the damage and figuring out their next steps.

One resident, Brim, said the fire started in his second floor apartment. He and his family rented the apartment, and spent most of Christmas Day there.

The fire destroyed the front room and the kitchen. Drywall that covered the ceiling is now gone and insulation hangs down. Most things in the apartment were stained by the black smoke from the fire. At the end of the apartment's hallway, tucked away in a utility closet, the remnants of the faulty heater remained.

"The fire started with the heater," Brim said, explaining the terrifying ordeal, gesturing to the charred remnants of the furnace.

Gabriel Offiebelu, a resident in a neighboring apartment, recounted the moments leading up to the evacuation to WDRB Wednesday night as firefighters from Okolona and Fern Creek battled the fire.

"First of all, we were smelling smoke. My roommates and I were smelling smoke," Offiebelu said. "Then later, maybe 20 minutes later, we started seeing smoke coming from the sockets, and then it was coming from the ground. It was really coming from the ground, that is when we knew something was really going on."

He went downstairs, looking for the source of the fire not knowing the fire was right next door.

"They actually alerted the residents in the apartment," said Offiebelu. "They smelled something, and as they got up to investigate the smoke detector started going off, they found the fire and got out."

Okolona Fire said that while nine apartments were significantly damaged, the quick response of residents and the timely activation of the smoke alarms prevented any injuries.

Volunteers from the American Red Cross in Louisville helped 15 residents displaced by the fire. The assistance included ensuring a temporary place to stay as well as other immediate needs.

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