West Nashville apartment fire leaves residents without a home

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - An overnight apartment fire in Bellevue now leaves more than a dozen people without a home. More than six apartment units are entirely exposed and burnt down to studs.

“It was a blazing inferno; I mean, the flames were probably 15 to 20 feet high and shooting up,” Travis Kimbrough said.

Kimbrough said he watched the fire speeding quickly, taking over more than 15 different apartment units in a Belle Valley Complex. “I saw a couple of people were crying and just at a loss,” Travis said.

Witnesses said they woke up to smoke and flames around 2 a.m. before being evacuated by firefighters. Metro Firefighter crews spent hours putting out a fire Travis watched take over his friend’s and neighbor’s homes.

“My heart sank, you know I was blessed that my apartment was fine, but then for all of my neighbors, my fellow residents, my heart sank because I know there are so many good people in this neighborhood that are not coming back to their homes,” Kimbrough said.

Walls turned to ashes, and belongings burnt to a crisp. Firefighters said that, luckily, no one was hurt, but the building was a total loss.

“That’s 15 different families that now don’t have a home to return to,” Kimbrough said.

Residents said they could only watch from the outside as flames spread throughout their homes. They were now waiting to see the extent of the damage after the investigation.

“To lose everything that you’ve acquired, to come home and now you have nothing, I think that makes all of our hearts sink,” Kimbrough said.

The American red cross is stepping in to help those without a home, while firefighters say the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

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