NEWARK, Ohio — Community members and businesses in Downtown Newark came together to support residents and emergency personnel after a fire broke out at an apartment building last weekend.
No injuries were reported after the two-alarm fire at the Avalon Apartments building on West Main Street, according to the Newark Fire Department. The three-story and 21-unit building was on fire for more than two hours before crews were able to put it out.
The Downtown Newark Library opened its doors to residents, their pets and emergency personnel last Saturday so that they had a warm place to rest and regroup. Avalon Apartments is located across the street from the library.
“The library naturally became a community anchor. So luckily we made room, and residents came in. They took it as a place to keep warm because it was very cold outside,” said Laura Appleman, marketing and PR manager of the library.
Staff members kept the building open to ensure residents could access Wi-Fi and charging stations and figure out their next steps. Licking County Transit also provided a bus to help transport residents.
“We had staff that wanted to help in any way they could. We typically close at 3 p.m., and we stayed open until 9 o’clock that night,” said Appleman. “It was a Saturday people typically want to go home after working all week but nobody batted an eye it was just something they wanted to do to help our community."
Several nearby agencies helped, including the American Red Cross Central & Southern Ohio Region, who organized emergency relief stations, and Licking County Coalition of Care’s Deb Tegtmeyer, who helped residents find hotels, according to a post from the library.
MNCHS Kitchen provided food for those at the library and nearby hotels offered discounted room rates for the affected residents.
The library shared a statement to Facebook saying in part, “Licking County Library was an anchor for residents, their pets and families, and emergency personnel to have a warm place to rest, re-group and refresh… Public libraries are a critical agency to aid and support their communities during times of crisis. On behalf of the residents and the Newark community, thank you.”
The cause of the fire is unknown at this time; however, Assistant Fire Chief Neal Murphy said in an interview last week that the fire started in the attic.
“The fire in a building like this has been renovated at least two times that I am aware of. It’s been around since the 1800s. When you do a lot of renovations, it creates a lot of hidden spaces for fire,” said Murphy.
Murphy said he's unsure when or if residents will be able to move back in.
According to the Red Cross, approximately 30 older adults who were affected by the apartment fire are being helped by the Red Cross with shelter, case work assistance and additional disaster recovery services.