SYRACUSE -- The fire started in a dryer but quickly spread through the walls of the Moses Dewitt apartment complex on Townsend Street in Syracuse. Firefighters had to tear open parts of the building to contain the fire as it moved from the third floor to the fourth and just below the roof. The flames were extinguished after about forty minutes but the 52 people who live in the Moses Dewitt apartment building were not allowed to back in.
"It's very hard. Everything is gone, I don't know where we're going to go," said Celayshia Stewart who lives in the building with her child.
Some neighbors planned to stay with family or friends but others had nowhere to go. The Red Cross set up an emergency shelter at St. Lucy's church on Syracuse's West Side.
"Food, clothing and shelter for people that are going to need it. I've got a bus here if they need a ride over there. The next thing is going to be medication, getting their medication," said Jim Roraback from the American Red Cross.
Neighbors couldn't go back in but firefighters did their best to bring medication out to them. Parents were also working with the Red Cross to find necessary food and clothing for their young children.
"Food is gone, clothing is gone. Everybody works hard for their stuff, the stuff they have in their home. So now everything is gone and it's no help. No help at all," said Stewart.
The Red Cross is also working on long term plans since it may be a while before the residents that live in the Moses Dewitt Apartment building can go back inside.
