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Fire at senior-living apartment in Texas kills five, injures 10

More than 150 firefighters carried from the facility between 75 and 120 elderly residents who could not walk.

By Fred Lambert
Trucks from the Houston Fire Department at an emergency scene. A three-alarm fire at a retirement high-rise in a north San Antonio suburb on December 28, 2014, caused five deaths and several injuries. Photo by Derek Key/CC/Flickr
Trucks from the Houston Fire Department at an emergency scene. A three-alarm fire at a retirement high-rise in a north San Antonio suburb on December 28, 2014, caused five deaths and several injuries. Photo by Derek Key/CC/Flickr

CASTLE HILLS, Texas, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- A three-alarm fire at a senior-living high-rise in Texas killed at least five residents and injured several others Sunday while firefighters from surrounding municipalities worked to rescue hundreds of residents from the blaze.

The Wedgwood Senior Living Center caught fire around 6. a.m. Sunday, prompting a response from first the Castle Hills Fire Department and then units from the San Antonio Fire Department and adjacent communities such as Balcones Heights, Leon Valley and Schertz.

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Around 150 firefighters worked to save residents trapped in the 11-story structure that houses about 700 people in the northern San Antonio suburb of Castle Hills. Several elderly residents were trapped on balconies and hung from open windows to escape the smoke as rescue workers used fire ladders to help dozens reach safety.

Between 75 and 120 residents, many who could not walk, were carried by firefighters from the building. Evacuees were taken to gyms at a nearby high school, where Red Cross workers and others provided food and blankets and police coordinated the recovery of prescription medications.

At least five people died in the blaze, while 11 were reportedly injured and three were hospitalized.

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Early official reports indicated 216 of the building's 700 residents were still unaccounted for, though it is unclear how many had left town for the holidays.

The fire apparently started on the third floor, according to witnesses. San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood reportedly said the third floor had been gutted. "After looking at the floors, it's amazing we did not have more loss of life," Hood told KSAT.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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