Fire officials looking at possible arson behind Minneapolis apartment fire; several hospitalized

A large fire Tuesday night in an apartment building near downtown Minneapolis — potentially a case of arson — displaced dozens of residents, some of whom hung out third-floor windows seeking to breathe as they called for help.

The Red Cross was helping those displaced, including children, from the building in the 1500 block of 11th Avenue S.

The call for help went out just before 9:45 p.m., and flames were still visible on the roof of the four-story garden-level structure at midnight. The blaze was finally extinguished early Wednesday.

Asked Wednesday morning whether the fire was suspicious or accidental, Assistant Fire Chief and spokeswoman Melanie Rucker said: “More so [someone] starting it intentionally. That was the initial report to [emergency] dispatch when it was called in.”

Two adults and a teenager suffered burns and were taken to a hospital for treatment, Rucker said. Another person was hospitalized for smoke inhalation. Rucker said in a statement released overnight that all were in serious but stable condition. She said others declined medical attention.

Two firefighters were evaluated on the scene for overexertion, but they went back to work, Rucker said.

Also, firefighters rescued a dog and gave the animal oxygen before it was reunited with its owner, she said.

There were 27 people displaced from the 22-unit building. Two Metro Transit buses provided shelter as they waited for the Red Cross.

Fire crews used four 40-foot ground ladders to rescue people trapped on the third level, Rucker said. Flames were shooting from that floor when crews arrived. The building has no standpipes, so crews had to lay lines inside “all the way up to the third floor” to fight flames from the interior, Rucker said.

“It’s always a tragedy when we have to come out and there’s so many people with injuries and displaced,” she said.

Investigators are considering arson but that has not been confirmed, Rucker said.