Duluth authorities investigate fatal fire at East Hillside building
It's the third fire in three years at the property that has resulted in death.
At least one person died and several people had to be rescued after a fire at an apartment building in the East Hillside neighborhood of Duluth early Saturday morning.
The incident is the third fire in three years at the property that has resulted in death. At a news conference Saturday afternoon, Duluth Fire Department Deputy Chief Mike Consie said dispatchers arrived on scene around 6 a.m. and found one resident dead.
A number of residents were rescued from the building while responders battled the fire. Several cats were also rescued or found dead at the scene.
One victim was transported to the hospital and the status of their injuries was unknown. Two firefighters sustained burn injuries while rescuing people from the building. They were treated at an urgent care facility and discharged on Saturday.
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
“This is a tragic event for our community,” said Consie. “Our hearts at the DFD go out to those members, those families that lost members in this fire and those that are injured.”
It was unclear what the cause of the fire was or the total number of residents that were in the building at the time of the fire. Duluth Fire Department Deputy Chief John Otis said there is an ongoing investigation with the state’s fire marshal division into the incident.
“This building unfortunately, for whatever reason, this is the third fire incident that resulted in fatalities,” said Otis. “The first was August of 2020 and the most recent was April of 2021. Both of those fires were investigated and determined to be accidental. This fire, like I said, is still under investigation.”
More than half of the building’s roof was burned off from the fire, which Otis said will likely result in its demolition.
The Red Cross of Northern Minnesota is working with residents who have been displaced because of the fire.