20 families displaced after apartment fire rips through Cobb County apartment complex

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Buildings at a Cobb County apartment complex are damaged and 20 families are looking for places to go.

NewsChopper 2 flew over the Franklin at East Cobb apartments as the buildings burned Wednesday afternoon.

Visuals at the scene showed smoke billowing up from multiple parts of the structure. Multiple units were damaged.

Crews from the Marietta Fire District are worked through part of the afternoon to put the fires out.

Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Michele Newell spoke to residents about what it was like escaping the flames.

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While multiple apartments were damaged, nobody was hurt and everyone made it out safely, according to officials.

However, many families lost their homes.

The fire gutted 10 units, and families living on the other side of the destroyed building can’t go back inside because the power is out.

Channel 2 Action News spoke to residents of the complex about their experience during the fire.

“I was hollering ‘Fire! Fire!’” Marla Welch, a resident who escaped the fire, told Newell.

“I just don’t know what to do,” Vokke Okoro, who is now displaced due to the damage, said.

As flames ripped through the apartment complex, residents said it was a state of chaos and panic.

“It just kept getting worse and worse, I burst into tears because I worked for it,” Rubin Daniels, another displaced resident, said.

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Large plumes of smoke hovered over the Franklin at East Cobb apartments as families rushed to safety. Some were just steps away from the flames.

Welch, who is visiting from Chicago, said her luggage was destroyed, but it’s the least of her worries.

“I just ran out, got the kids. He got the kids. I got a kid. We ran out and he ran back in there to get an urn,” Welch told Channel 2 Action News.

While the fire gutted 10 apartment units, it could’ve been worse.

“One of the things that helped us contain this fire is the firewall that separates this building,” Steve Dau, Marietta Fire Department Captain, said.

Still, some residents lost a lot, even if they got out safely.

“Everything gone, everything gone. I’ve been in this apartment for 23 years,” Vokee said. “I’m alive, that’s what matters, you know. I thank God I’m alive.”

Investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire, and the Red Cross is at Franklin at East Cobb to help the victims.

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