A Jefferson County Apartment Fire Leaves One Family Homeless

Wadley, Jefferson County—Wadley, Georgia was the scene of a massive fire that started around 3:30, Friday afternoon. It took 3 engine companies about 45 minutes to put it out, but it’s going to take a lot longer for some of these families to get back on their feet.

Shalacia Gilmore, Left homeless from a fire:  “Nobody one was home, the doors was locked, my friends said they had to kick the window in to open the door and they ran in there to make sure I wasn’t in there because they thought somebody was home.”

Late Friday night, Shalacia Gilmore was left with unanswered questions when she returned home to save whatever she could after a fire destroyed her family’s apartment.   

Gilmore:  “I’m getting the little stuff I do have. A lot of our stuff got messed up from the firefighters going in with the water and knocking stuff down, and breaking stuff.”

Gilmore says she found out about the fire on her way home from school.

Gilmore:  “One of my friends called me and was like is somebody at your house? I was like, I don’t know I’m on my way home from school, and he was like, ya’ll’s house is on fire.”

Chief Bruce Logue, Wadley Fire Department:  “This unit when it was built, it doesn’t have any fire walls, from one unit to the next, so the fire once it got back up into the attic was able to move to other areas in the attic over the other units.”

Most of the roof was burnt out, leaving 4 more families temporarily without a home.

Chief Logue:  “You know it’s tragic when one unit catches on fire that the other families are displaced but you know that’s just the way that when this unit was built there was no fire wall protection put in.”

Gilmore:  “Today wasn’t a good day, it was a big shock, like I don’t understand how it happened and if somebody did it why they would do it.”

The Gilmores and the 4 other families who were affected met with American Red Cross Friday night.  Chief Logue says they’ll likely be put up in a hotel for a few nights, from there they’ll see if the housing authority has any open places to house them. 

We’re told the fire started with the stove in the kitchen.  Thankfully no one was hurt and it’s still under investigation.