Monday afternoon was a busy one for the Chapel Hill Fire Department: in a span of just 15 minutes, crews responded to two separate fires as well as a downed tree.

It all happened shortly after 4 p.m., as torrential rain, lightning, and high winds descended on Orange County.

At 4:00, firefighters responded to a small basement fire on Cynthia Drive. Just six minutes later, crews were called to Hamilton Road in Glen Lennox, where a tree fell on a home. And just six minutes after that, still another fire was reported at Chapel Hill North apartments on Perkins Drive.

The Perkins Drive fire turned out to be the most significant, leaving four units uninhabitable and displacing seven residents. Luckily, though, there were no injuries reported in any of the three incidents.

The three incidents all occurred in the midst of a severe thunderstorm – but the cause of each incident is still technically under investigation.

Photos via the Chapel Hill Fire Department.


Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our biweekly newsletter.