More than 350 people were hurriedly evacuated from an Orange County apartment complex Thursday morning after a panicked resident called 911 to report “popping” sounds, a front door that wouldn’t open and her fear the five-story building might collapse.
Orange County Fire Rescue workers had to break down that woman’s door to rescue her and discovered cracks and other damage throughout the building.
Officials decided to evacuate all the residents of The Rialto apartments on Sand Lake Road in Dr. Phillips because of those signs of “structural instability,” Fire Rescue said.
The building with about 200 apartments and 358 residents is now off-limits until a structural engineer hired by the property owner can evaluate it, agency officials said.
Residents outside The Rialto apartments in Dr. Phillips with their belongings packed into suitcases after being evacuated from the apartment that morning after signs of structural instability were found. (Silas Morgan/Orlando Sentinel)
William Farhat, an agency division chief, said firefighters responded to the apartment around 5 a.m. after the resident called 911.
They initially evacuated that portion of the complex and then contacted county building inspectors, who found other signs of problems and recommended a full evacuation. Firefighters found cracks around several doors and had to force some of those them open to free residents, as they had with the 911 caller, Farhat said.
“It’s very inconvenient for them and we understand that, but there’s no other option,” he said. “The only thing we could do at this point is to take the safest approach and evacuate them and keep them safe.”
The apartment complex was built in 2014, according to the Orange County Property Appraiser’s website.
It advertises itself as “one of Orlando’s premier residential experiences” that “offers homes with sweeping views of Spring Lake and high-end amenities.”
The apartment’s corporate office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Farhat said fire rescue conducted its annual inspection of the apartment in September and found no structural damage at the time. But firefighters saw signs of damage Thursday on all five of the apartment’s floors. Officials do not yet know what caused the damage.
Following the initial evacuation, residents were escorted back into the apartment to quickly retrieve their belongings. A stream of people left the apartment around noon carrying suitcases, with sheriff’s deputies and Lynx employees helping.
Kimberly Robertson and her best friend woke “in a panic” when firefighters began loudly knocking on their door around 6:30 a.m. They thought someone was trying to break in, but then heard firefighters telling them the building could collapse.
The two quickly packed, grabbed their dog and later were escorted back in by deputies to retrieve more belongings.
The two were still in their pajamas, with Robertson wearing a robe, around noon as they packed items into their car and prepared to head to a hotel.
“We got each other. We will figure it out,” she said. “We’ll have a little sleep over in the hotel. It’ll be fine.”
Melvin Orama, who has lived at The Rialto for over two years, also was shocked by the morning’s events. He said building maintenance has always been on point, and he has never seen any damage.
When firefighters knocked on his door to tell him to evacuate, he at first thought someone was trying to scam him into leaving so they could take his belongings.
“I was like, I don’t know what to do. Like, where are we going to go?” he said. “What am I supposed to pack? Is this going to be for a day, for two days, for a whole week, permanently?”
Orama, who lives at The Rialto with his mother, said he was escorted back into the apartment to retrieve his mother’s medication. He then spent an hour on the phone with relatives trying to coordinate next steps. They will be staying with relatives in Port St. Lucie. He is concerned about what will happen to his lease.
“You need to tell me if you’re going to end my lease contract and I’m not going to be penalized for renting someone somewhere else, right?” he said. “Because I, we, need to move on. We have life, we have work.”
Orange County’s Office of Emergency Management, Visit Orlando, and the American Red Cross said they are working to secure hotel accommodations for displaced residents. Initially, Lynx provided temporary, on-site shelter from the cold weather, according to a news release from Orange County Fire Rescue.
Several hotels in the area are offering discounted rates to displaced residents including Rosen Hotels & Resorts, Doubletree Theme Park Resort, and Courtyard by Marriott, the release said.