CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — An apartment building fire Sunday night in Chesterfield has prompted aid from the Virginia Red Cross.
At 11:07 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 22, fire crews from Chesterfield County Fire and EMS responded to the Colonial Village at Waterford apartment complex on Pavilion Place for reports of a fire. Once on scene, crews found flames coming from a three-story apartment building.
The fire was marked under control at around 12:29 a.m. on Monday morning.
Four people were treated for minor injuries at the scene. A firefighter was taken to the hospital for minor injuries and has since been released. A total of 12 apartments were damaged as a result of the fire, leaving 48 residents without a home.
Red Cross volunteers were at the apartment complex Monday, helping those who had been impacted.
“If you think about you’re standing in front of your home, losing everything, it’s a traumatic experience, it’s very stressful,” Communications Director for the Red Cross Virginia, Jonathan McNamara, said.
McNamara said workers were on the ground within hours to help fire victims. As residents continue to pick up the pieces, McNamara said Red Cross volunteers will be there to help.
“It’s replacing those items that are lost. But then over the weeks to come, connecting them with additional resources, making sure they know what full services are available from the Red Cross,” McNamara said.
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(Photo: Alexis Bellamy, 8News) -
(Courtesy of Chesterfield Fire & EMS) -
(Courtesy of Chesterfield Fire & EMS) -
(Photo: Lindsey West, 8News) -
(Photo: Lindsey West, 8News) -
(Photo: Lindsey West, 8News) -
(Photo: Tyler Hall, 8News) -
(Photo: Tyler Hall, 8News) -
(Photo: Tyler Hall, 8News) -
(Photo: Tyler Hall, 8News) -
(Photo: Tyler Hall, 8News)
McNamara said the apartment complex’s management has been working to place some of the displaced tenants in new apartments.
This isn’t the first serious fire to have occurred at Colonial Village at Waterford in recent memory. In 2021, two other fires at the same complex resulted in the displacement of 36 people.
According to McNamara, in these situations, it’s important for volunteers to be there to guide those displaced in any way they can.
“A lot of times, just being able to listen to them, being able to answer some of their questions is the best way that you can alleviate stress,” said McNamara. “And when you alleviate that stress, you can start to get them to focus on what needs to happen in the short term to help them start to recover.”
The cause of Sunday night’s fire is currently unknown.
