Friday, December 24, 1999
Neighbors rush donations after fire
BY SHEILA McLAUGHLIN and RICHELLE THOMPSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
UNION TOWNSHIP — While they watched their homes turn to cinders two days before Christmas, residents of Woodbridge on the Lake apartments found hope in small gestures.
The blaze that destroyed a 65-unit building Thursday in Butler County was an opportunity for the community to rally around 55 families who lost their homes and nearly all their possessions.
“I'm not surprised,” said the Rev. Jim Meade, pastor of St. John Catholic Church on Cincinnati-Dayton Road. “People in this area, all you have to do is mention a need and people respond immediately. And it's not only at Christmas.”
Seated inside a trailer that served as a command center, Father Meade had pitched in to help set up donation centers around the community. He also intended to pair his parishioners with families who needed help.
The blaze, which appeared to have started in the kitchen of a ground-floor apartment about 8 a.m., quickly spread from the center of the structure, forcing residents to run for safety.
Many were barefoot and clad only in pajamas.
Police and firefighters evacuated the buildings and helped several residents climb from their balconies onto fire ladders to safety.
Only a few minor injuries were reported, but several pets were lost in the blaze, which took firefighters from four departments at least four hours to bring under control.
Less than two hours after the fire broke out in one of eight buildings at the 32-year-old complex, toys, clothing, diapers and other items were piled around the complex clubhouse off Cincinnati-Dayton Road.
Displaced residents, seeking refuge from frigid temperatures, sat in borrowed clothes and ate donated food.
In a corner of the crowded clubhouse, 3-year-old Dailyn Brock stacked blocks with 15-year-old Heather Young. Part of a game called Tumbling Towers, the blocks had been wrapped and under Heather's Christmas tree in another building.
“I asked my mom if I could open my presents, and give it to them,” Heather said. “She told me, "You've only got a few presents,' and I said, "I don't care. I want to give them away.'”
Donna and Garret Fields, who lived in another building, handed out baby blankets, sleepers and toddler clothes — items they had stashed for the birth of their twins in February.
“Money's real tight for us,” Mr. Fields said. “But it's Christmas. It's the time of year for giving, and everybody lost a lot of stuff.”
By noon, goodwill efforts reached beyond the clubhouse walls, spreading throughout the community.
Township officials, community groups, churches and businesses set up emergency funds and collection centers for more furniture, clothes, food and other items.
A long line of cars stretched from a donation center at the former Voice of America site on Tylersville Road, where drivers waited to unload clothes, cash and Christmas decorations.
Don Fowler of Union Township dropped off coats and food.
“We were in such comfort in our homes, it just tore at our hearts to see that these people were without anything at all,” he said.
A neighboring apartment complex offered its vacant apartments to some residents. Others said they were planning to stay with relatives or at the nearby Holiday Inn Express.
Township officials immediately activated a disaster plan that included setting up collection centers, establishing an emergency fund for fire victims and making sure they had food and warm clothes.
They called on charitable organizations, businesses and a crew of township employees who assessed needs and even had residents' prescriptions refilled.
“We don't leave anybody sitting on the curb,” said David Gully, Union Township Administrator.
The apartment complex has had its share of adversity. A 1978 fire leveled a 54-unit building at the complex, known then as Highland Greens. At least twice more, in 1980 and 1981, the complex sustained significant damage from fires.
In 1986, a tornado ripped the roofs off seven of the eight buildings, forcing 1,000 residents out of their homes.
Township officials did not set a cost on the fire damage, but a spokesman for the complex owner estimated the company's loss at at least $2 million.
That figure did not include residents' personal belongings. Many said they were not insured.
Enquirer reporter Steve Kemme and contributor David Eck also reported on this story.
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