LaVista Walk Apartment Fire Leaves Residents Displaced

The Lavsita Walk Apartment Fire in Atlanta has left hundreds of residents. According to published reports, the three alarm Atlanta apartment fire started on the roof of the complex and may have been caused by fireworks. Seventeen people were treated for smoke inhalation. Two people have been charged with first-degree criminal damage to propery and reckless conduct for starting the apartment fire. The entire complex will likely have to be torn down due to the severity of the fire damage. According to reports, fire alarms at the Lavista Walk apartments would trigger so frequently that residents thought this alarm was another false alarm. “That’s why they said no one felt like the fire was real because the fire alarms are always going off” said one resident. The extensive damage to the complex may have been due to a failure of the fire sprinklers, which, according to witnesses, did not work during the blaze. 

Local businesses have also been affected by the Atlanta apartment fire. Most businesses were out of power for a full weekend and local businesses were covered in soot from the fire ashes. 

APARTMENT FIRES ARE PREVENTABLE

Apartment fires should not be catastrophic: fire suppression systems (including sprinklers) and adequate fire doors can prevent a fire from spreading. Apartment owners and managers have a duty to keep apartments safe, particularly from fires that often occur in multi-tenant housing.