Tomotla – A fire destroyed a two-story apartment building at Meadowbrook Apartments on Aug. 26, leaving four families homeless and pets missing, but a few bright spots as well.
Cherokee County Emergency Medical Services transported two victims – one by ambulance to Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital in Peachtree, and a second who was airlifted to Grady Hospital in Atlanta with trauma and second-degree burn injuries.
The airlifted patient jumped from the second floor to escape the fire and was initially helped away from the complex by a citizen, Murphy Fire Chief Al Lovingood said.
The patient transported by ground was treated and released, while the patient flown to Grady was released during the evening on Aug. 27. Two other patients were evaluated on the scene but did not need to be transported for hospital care, he said.
The building, which contained apartment units 17-20, was declared a total loss. Cause of the fire was determined to be accidental; a grill that was burning debris was knocked over on the complex balcony and quickly spread.
Afternoon blaze
At 2:33 p.m. Aug. 26, Cherokee County EMS and fire departments in Murphy, Peachtree, Valleytown, Martins Creek and Clay County and were dispatched to Meadowbrook Apartments at 831 Tomotla Road. There was a report of a commercial apartment fire.
Division Chief Brian King initially arrived at 2:38 p.m. He confirmed with occupants that everyone had exited the complex.
Murphy’s first engine, responding from Station 3 on James A. Mulkey Drive, arrived at 2:39 p.m. and found the two-story, wood-frame apartment building with heavy fire showing from the front. A second two-story building about 15 feet away was exhibiting signs of imminent ignition on its right side.
Firefighters used a transitional fire attack via a master stream from the initial engine to control much of the fire and to protect the exposure, Lovingood said. Additional personnel and apparatus arrived from all departments and continued fire operations.
The incident command was notified of four injured people. EMS requested additional units.
Water supply was established by a water shuttle operation from fire hydrant at the intersection of U.S. 19 and Tomotla Road.
A second alarm was requested to include an additional tanker from Ranger, but it was cancelled prior to arrival. The Ranger and Grape Creek fire departments provided stand-by coverage at Murphy’s main fire station.
The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office was requested to respond for investigation and Cherokee County Emergency Management responded to help with occupant logistics. The American Red Cross was requested to aid with temporary needs of displaced occupants. Tomotla Baptist Church, which is next door to the burning building, provided meeting space and other resources, according to reports.
The fire was controlled at 3:24 p.m. Firefighters rescued a kitten in a unit of the complex and returned the kitten to its owner.
A neighboring two-story building containing apartment units 13-16 sustained damage to exterior siding but no additional structural damage. After control of the fire, occupants were permitted to re-occupy that building.
A single-story complex behind the burned building sustained minor damage to exterior siding from flying embers. The siding was extinguished by an occupant.
Overhaul was completed and Murphy fire left the scene at 6:19 p.m. Firefighters returned through the night and next day to evaluate for any smoldering areas.
Fates of four families
Four families were displaced.
Nathaniel Johnson, 8, a Murphy Elementary School third-grader, was early in noticing smoke from the fire and yelled at the top of his lungs to alert residents to get out. He rushed in to rescue two cats his mother, Felisha Johnson, was fostering for the Valley River Humane Society and cut his arm in the process.
The cats resisted his rescue attempt and ran back into the burning building.
“I yelled as loud as I could,” Nathaniel said. “I tried to rescue the kitten and the cat, but they ran back inside.”
“If it weren’t for him, we’d probably still be in there,” Nathaniel’s mother said, gesturing toward the burned-out remnants of the apartment building.
Nile McCool, 18, is a game developer who lived in a ground-floor unit with his father and was asleep when he heard popping sounds and a fire alarm. He threw on shorts and a T-shirt, grabbed his headset and laptop computer, and fled the building.
However, he was unable to find his dog, Powder. Distraught, he stood barefoot in the brush beneath the shade of trees, mourning the loss of his dog.
After controlling the blaze, firefighters entered the building looking for victims and survivors, where they found Powder alive and well. Volunteer firefighter Rob Graf kept careful watch over the dog until her owner could be found. McCool and Powder were on opposite sides of the parking lot, and it took some time before the two were reunited.