From Volunteer Tom Davis
The fire itself was in Building 4 of the 4-building Riverside Square complex (Blg. 4 has 10 units/floor and 3 floors). The fire started in, and spread through, the west 3/4 of the 3rd floor. Good news/bad news: the building's structure was sound (except for the totaled units on the 3rd floor), but there was water damage everywhere on the 1st and 2nd floors. They had to turn off power to the whole complex and call in an electrician to separate the power for Blg. 4 from the others before they could turn power back on for blgs. 1-3 and let their residents back in.
Building 4 was declared uninhabitable until it can be repaired or rebuilt. Austin Fire Chief Kusey assigned an AFD team to talk to Blg. 4's residents, find out what they needed out of their apartments immediately, and go retrieve that. He said everyone would be able to go in and retrieve other belongings later today or tomorrow.
The ARCCT team set up in the office of Riverside Place. There were 11 empty units in Riverside Place, and the management put the people who had pets into them; Carol [Volunteer] said she'd open a shelter for the rest of the Blg. 4 residents who didn't have a place to go.
There were no injuries - to people or pets; only one pet (a dog) didn't make it out with her owner, and a fire fighter went in and got her out from under the bed where she was hiding.
Tom Davis
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