One person is dead after a fire tore through an apartment building in Carrboro on Monday, according to the town government. Carrboro Fire Department and other local emergency crews responded to a fire within an apartment building on Monday.

A fire within Building A of the Hillmont Apartments community at 124 Fidelity Street led to a significant response, with a release from the Town of Carrboro later confirming the first call for the fire came in at 4 p.m. Fire crews arrived within two minutes to the scene and with the amount of heavy smoke and fire conditions seen, the town said they called a second alarm to have additional firefighters from other areas help battle the blaze. The fire was stopped within an hour of firefighters arrival, according to the town.

An update on Tuesday identified 53-year-old Carrboro resident Thomas Owens Jr. as the fatal victim of the incident.

Carrboro Fire reported multiple units suffered “significant fire damage, with additional smoke damage to adjacent units.” At least 20 Hillmont residents will be displaced from the damage, which has a preliminary estimated cost of $700,000. The cause of the fire remains under investigation as of Tuesday morning, with the Office of the State Fire Marshal assisting the local officials.

In its release, the local government asked road users to avoid Fidelity Street and Davie Road until further notice, as the road is still closed for clearing emergency response crews and investigators.

Photo via Mike Benson.

Monday’s blaze marks the second apartment fire within a month for the Carrboro community. Eighteen residents of the Ashbrook Apartments community suffered displacement from their homes after an overnight fire damaged their units on April 16. The fire comes the day Orange County was removed from a month-long statewide burn ban put into place because of drought conditions — but 19 of North Carolina’s counties, including the neighboring Alamance and Chatham counties, remain on notice by the state government.

In addition to Carrboro Fire-Rescue crews, the department received help during the incident from the Chapel Hill Fire Department, White Cross Fire Department, North Chatham Fire Department, Orange Grove Fire Department, New Hope Fire Department, Orange County Emergency Services, the Carrboro Police Department and South Orange Rescue Squad, according to Monday’s release.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated on Tuesday, May 5, following an update from the Town of Carrboro identifying the fatality.

Featured photo via Mike Benson.

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