2 residents injured, 20 displaced by Everett apartments fire

Published 1:30 am Thursday, December 21, 2017

Update, 10 a.m. Friday: Twenty people were displaced Thursday night after a fire at an apartment complex on Colby Avenue in Everett. Smoke inhalation left one elderly woman with life-threatening injuries. An update on her condition wasn’t available, said Steve Goforth, assistant fire marshal. A second person’s injuries were not life-threatening. Investigators were still working to determine the fire’s cause.

EVERETT — An elderly woman suffered critical injuries in a three-alarm fire at Colby Square Apartments on Thursday night, according to Everett firefighters.

A second person was hurt from jumping off a balcony to escape flames at the two-story complex around 10:20 p.m. at 2229 Colby Ave.

Kelly Orton, 27, a neighbor, was driving home from making Christmas cookies at a friend’s house when she saw flames at the 14-unit building. She helped a police officer rescue an elderly woman in a wheelchair from the first floor, she said. She saw several people jumping from the second-story balcony.

Many of the residents are elderly, neighbors said. One woman who was rescued needed CPR, said Steve Goforth, assistant fire marshal. It was not immediately clear if she’d been burned or if she’d suffered other medical issues.

Ambulances rushed both of the injured people up the street to Providence Regional Medical Center.

Heavy smoke and flames were still visible at 11 p.m., centered near the bend in the L-shaped building. There was obvious damage to the upper floor and the roof of the two-story structure.

Investigators were collecting witness statements as they tried to determine how the fire started.