Firefighters Battle Second-Floor Apartment Blaze in Greenfield

Firefighters from more than a half a dozen local fire departments battled a second-story apartment blaze at 4720 Supreme Court in Greenfield on Wednesday. 

No injuries were reported at the scene of the fire, which started around 3:30 p.m., according to residents of the building.

To see how Greenfield Patch covered the breaking news of the fire on Facebook, click here.

Jonathan Hernandez, 17, called 911 after seeing smoke rising from the roof of the apartment building. 

"I ran in there and started knocking on everyone's doors making sure everyone got out," said Hernandez, who lives in the building facing the apartment where the fire occurred. "A couple of people came out."

Hernandez entered the building north of where the fire appeared to have erupted. 

"He ran in. I said, 'Oh my goodness, evacuate everybody,'" said Monica Hernandez, his mother. "I was thinking about the poor people, hopefully nobody is in there. Very scary."

The fire gutted a large portion of the south end of the two-story structure, according to fire officials. 

Greenfield Fire Department Interim Chief Jon Cohn said the time of day when the fire began probably was factor in no injuries. 

"Less people in the building and people are mobile in their apartments, awake, so we didn't have people waking up to the sounds, having to react," said Cohn, who added that one firefighter was treated at the scene for a heat related injury.  

Richard Kostka got home from a round of golf shortly before the fire began. 

Kostka, who lives in a first-floor unit near the apartment where the fire began, said he was watching the Dr. Oz show in his pajamas when he saw smoke outside his window. 

"I saw a big puff of smoke and I said, 'Ma, I think we have a fire,'" he said. "I got up from the couch, went to the bedroom to change my clothes real quick because there was no smoke in our area yet." 

Kostka enjoyed a cigarette as he watched the firefighters battle the blaze. 

"I grabbed some socks and some money real quick," he added. 

"I saw flames upstairs, tons of smoke," Kostka said, describing what he saw while leaving the building. 

"Thank goodness my clubs are in my car," he said, relieved.  

According to fire officials, the blaze probably started on a balcony on the south side the large apartment building south of Layton Ave., a few blocks west of 84th Street. 

Eight apartments were completely destroyed while another four units were heavily damaged, according to fire fighters. 

About two dozen people are displaced due to the fire, officials at the scene said. Red Cross personnel were on hand, assisting the displaced apartment dwellers. 

According to Cohn, the fire burned above the sprinkler system. As a result, the sprinklers did not go off, he explained. 

"It looks like the way the apartments are designed, with cathedral ceilings, that was the problem, there is no space there," said Cohn, as he made a triangle with his hands. "It burns above the sprinklers and eventually burns down."