WILTON MANORS, Fla. — Authorities say two residents were displaced Wednesday morning after a blaze broke out in the attic of a Wilton Manors apartment building that may have been sparked by lightning.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue said crews responded to the two-story building on Northeast 11th Avenue after receiving reports that the roof had been struck around 3 a.m.
Cellphone video provided by FLFR shows crews inspecting the building and working on the roof as they dealt with smoke and flames.
Residents described the thunderstorm and lightning strike as extremely loud.
“If you’ve been in the military, if you’ve ever gone to a hand grenade range or something like that, it sounded like a bomb went off,” one resident said. Another added, “It woke me out of a dead sleep.”
Firefighters found smoke inside some units and flames in the attic space.
“Apparently struck the roof and set the roof on fire. We looked in the attic; it was filled with smoke. So we called 911. They came out and put out the fire,” a resident said.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue said the fire was contained in about 30 minutes and did not spread extensively. No injuries were reported.
Investigators are working to determine whether the fire was caused by a lightning strike.
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