One person died and at least one other was injured Wednesday in a huge apartment fire in DeKalb County, authorities said.
DeKalb County fire Capt. Eric Jackson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the blaze broke out around daybreak at The Parke on Covington apartments in the 3000 block of Covington Highway.
“Unfortunately, we do have one fatality,” Jackson said.
DeKalb fire Deputy Chief Norman Augustin said according to family members, the man who died was in his late 20s.
Augustin said the fire appears to have started in the second-floor room where the man was found dead.
Jackson said another person who jumped from the burning two-story brick building was taken to a local hospital.
Kereya Wade credited her son for her family being able to safely get out of the burning building.
“I feel like if it wasn’t for my son, I wouldn’t be here, because he heard the alarm going off,” Wade said.
She said three of her neighbors were forced to jump to escape the flames.
“One, she hurt her leg and her head real bad," Wade said. "And the other two, they’re fine.”
“Tomorrow’s not promised,” she said. “We don’t have anything. Everything’s gone.”
Covington Highway was closed just inside I-285 near Redan Road while fire crews doused the flames, but all lanes had reopened by 9:30 a.m.
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