BRIDGEVILLE, Pa. -- The state fire marshal said a lit cigarette is to blame for a fire at an assisted living high-rise that killed an 86-year-old woman.
More than 100 senior citizens were evacuated Monday from the 11-story Bridgeville Towers at 479 Bank St.
Fire crews were called to the building shortly after 7 p.m. and found Dorothy Haskins burned inside a fourth-floor apartment, where the fire started.
Haskins was taken to the hospital in critical condition. She died on Tuesday.
Another person went into cardiac arrest and a firefighter was taken St. Clair Hospital for heat exhaustion, emergency officials told WTAE Channel 4 Action News. No identities or conditions in those cases were released.
By 7:30 p.m., authorities said firefighters got the fire under control. Authorities said most of the damage was confined to the third and fourth floors, and a cause remained under investigation overnight.
WTAE Channel 4 Action News reporter Jon Greiner talked to the first two responders at the scene, a police officer and the fire chief, who said smoke poured from of the building, making evacuations difficult. By the time firefighters arrived, the smoke had climbed to the 10th floor.
Emergency officials said an estimated 120 people were evacuated from the high-rise.
"It scared the daylights out of me, man, because there was smoke in my room, and I live on the second floor. I went down the hall and looked up and down. There was a sheriff, a policeman and another one that grabbed me. 'Get out,' he says, 'There's a fire real bad right where you're at.' I says, 'OK, can I get a coat?' He says, 'Don't worry about it. We'll take care of you,' and that's when they gave me this blanket," said Frank Cukrzynski, a resident.
"The fire alarm went off, and I live on the seventh floor. They told us to evacuate as soon as we hear an alarm. We did. I grabbed my cat and ran down seven floors," said Ginny Levi, a resident.
"We have a lot of people who are wheelchair-bound in this building," Bridgeville Volunteer Fire Chief Bill Chilleo said.
Chilleo said firefighters had to carry some of the residents in wheelchairs down stairs.
"Later on, when the scene was secure, we utilized the elevators," Chilleo said.
Port Authority buses were called to the scene to provide temporary shelter. Authorities anticipated that most of the residents would be allowed to return to their apartments Monday night.
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