Fire breaks out at apartments in Jacksonville’s Mandarin area

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Nineteen people are without a place to stay after a fire broke out at a Mandarin apartment complex early Tuesday morning.

Just before 5:30 a.m., several crews with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department responded to a fire at the St. Augustine at the Lake apartment complex on Old St. Augustine Road near I-295.

Firefighters found the fire in the attic of a third-floor apartment and were able to get it under control.

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Nineteen people are without a place to stay after a fire broke out at the St. Augustine at the Lake apartment complex on Old St. Augustine Road near I-295. Firefighters found the fire in the attic of a third-floor apartment. (Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department)

JFRD believes six to seven units were damaged by the fire and the state fire marshal is working to learn what caused the fire.

No one was inside the apartment at the time of the fire and there are no injuries, according to JFRD.

The Red Cross is helping the 10 families that were affected by the fire.

In a typical year, home fires kill more people in the United States than all other natural disasters combined, according to the Red Cross.

In order to keep your home safe, the Red Cross says to check your smoke alarms every month and have a plan to escape a house fire, should one occur, and practice it at least twice a year.

For more information, visit www.redcross.org/fire.

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