Nine people were displaced after a two-alarm fire heavily damaged a rooming house Wednesday morning, April 8, in southwest Rochester.
Rochester firefighters were called to 435 Columbia Ave. just before 4:15 a.m., after several people called 911 to report the blaze, said Lt. Howard Villegas of the Rochester Fire Department. The first responding firefighters confirmed flames on the first floor of the two-story house.
The roof partially collapsed as flames spread between floors and into the attic, Villeagas said. It took firefighters roughly 90 minutes to control the blaze.
No injuries were reported. All residents escaped safely, in part due to working smoke detectors that alerted them to the blaze, Villegas said.
Fire officials are investigating to determine the cause. The American Red Cross is assisting the displaced residents. The house, according to city property records, includes two units and roughly 3,000 square feet on its two floors.
Columbia Avenue is a residential road that runs between Genesee Street and Jefferson Avenue in southwest Rochester.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Two-alarm fire displaces nine people in Rochester
Reporting by Victoria E. Freile, New York Connect Team / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
