Multiple residents were displaced on Monday afternoon after lightning struck the roof of their apartment building in St. Cloud, sparking a fire.
St. Cloud Fire Rescue Department units responded to the St. Cloud Village apartment complex at around 1:30 p.m. on Monday, August 25, after receiving reports of an apartment fire. Multiple individuals had called 911 after they saw smoke rising from the roof of one of the buildings, according to SCFRD.
Within minutes, firefighters arrived on scene and made sure that all residents and their pets were safely evacuated from the apartment building.
Firefighters then quickly attacked the fire and extinguished it before the flames could spread.
According to SCFRD, a total of eight apartment units have been deemed uninhabitable due to damage sustained from the lightning strike and subsequent fire.
The American Red Cross sent representatives to the apartment complex to assist the displaced residents.
There were no injuries reported.
SCFRD stated in a social media post that this was the first structure fire call for Truck 30, which was specifically designed for responding to multi-story apartments and high-rise buildings.