Residents of about 12 units were displaced after an early morning fire at an Atlantic City high-rise Wednesday.
The fire started in the bedroom of an eighth-floor unit at the Brighton Towers.
Ted G., who lives in the seventh-floor unit right below where the fire started, told BreakingAC, he heard a bang and smelled smoke
He woke up his mother and the two got out.
The call came in before 5 a.m., with firefighter at the station two blocks away responding.
A detective also saw the blaze and radioed in, Public Safety Director Sean Griffin said.
Police officers also responded to help get residents out, with one taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
He was treated and released by 8 a.m., Police Chief James Sarkos said at a press conference in the Public Safety Building.
Five residents got medical clearance at the scene. No other injuries were reported
George Stefanides, president of the Brighton Towers Condominium Association, credited the quick response from public safety in keeping a bad situation from becoming worse.
"They were very responsive," he said as he worked to help coordinate residents. "I want to give them credit."
Atlantic City Fire Department's Ladder 2, Rescue 1, and Engines 2 and 6 arrived at 4:55 a.m. under the command of Deputy Chief William DiLorenzo and Acting Battalion Chief Paul Hess.
Additional units were brought in with a general recall of all Fire Department personnel.
Firefighters conducted forced entry and apartment-by-apartment searches to complete evacuations and effect rescues, particularly on the ninth floor and above.
Mutual aid and support were provided by the Absecon, Pleasantville, and Ventnor fire departments, the Atlantic County Fire Coordinators, Exceptional Ambulance Service, and AtlantiCare.
By 6:45 a.m., the fire was declared under control and operations transitioned to salvage and overhaul.
Residents were immediately provided shelter in the Public Safety Building, and then some were transported to the All Wars Memorial Building by the city's two "Great Day" buses.
They were allowed back inside around 9:45 a.m., contained to the lobby. Then allowed back in their units as they were cleared.
The Red Cross is working with those who were displaced.
Jeffrey Simmons just moved into his third-floor apartment on Christmas Eve.
He said his girlfriend woke him up and said, "We've got to go."
"I said, 'Where are we going?'" he said. "I thought she was kidding."
Then he saw flaming debris pass by his window .
"You're right," he told her. "We've got to get the (expletive) out of here."
They were able to return to their apartment, he later told BreakingAC. He said that the ceiling had some dripping, but it was deemed inhabitable.
