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Fire destroys apartment building, damages others in USF area

 
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue firefighters extinguish a 2-alarm fire at the Cordova apartments in Tampa. The fire ignited late Friday afternoon and displaced 8-12 families. [Friday, April 28, 2017] [Photo Luis Santana | Times]
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue firefighters extinguish a 2-alarm fire at the Cordova apartments in Tampa. The fire ignited late Friday afternoon and displaced 8-12 families. [Friday, April 28, 2017] [Photo Luis Santana | Times]
Published April 29, 2017

A stubborn fire that tore through a Tampa apartment building late Friday had Hillsborough County Fire Rescue crews battling flames for about 90 minutes.

Large flames and thick smoke poured from the collapsed roof of a two-story building in the Cordova Apartments, at 12702 University Club Drive, Fire Rescue spokesman Corey Dierdorff said.

All eight apartments in the building were destroyed in the fire, though no residents or pets were injured, he said. Two neighboring buildings also showed signs of damage caused by intense radiant heat, he said.

A faulty air conditioning units was likely to blame, Dierdorff said. Investigators believe the blaze began about 6 p.m. and quickly spread through an open, communal attic space in the wood-framed building.

None of the 22 apartments in the complex contain fire sprinklers, Dierdorff said. They were built in 1975, well before the city adopted its current ordinances requiring contractors to install fire sprinkler systems in similar apartments.

"We always strongly encourage people to install fire sprinklers," Dierdorff said. "They're a huge help for us and usually get the fire knocked out before we even get there."

It took two ladder trucks and multiple ground crews to bring the 2-alarm fire under control just before 8 p.m., he said. Parts of 22nd Street were closed, as were entrances to the apartment complex, and had yet to reopen by 8:30 p.m.

Firefighters arrived at the apartments about 6:30 p.m. and the American Red Cross was called to the scene about 7 p.m.

This is the second time in recent months that a large fire has torn through the wood-framed buildings inside the complex.

On Dec. 12, food cooking on a stove caught fire, destroying one building and displacing about 20 people. One resident's dog died and a woman suffered minor injuries when she jumped from her second-floor balcony to escape the flames. No one else was seriously injured.