Fourteen people were evacuated from the Senior Saints Home early Thursday evening as an attic fire broke out and responders worked quickly to contain the flames, said East Ridge Police Chief Mike Williams.
A smoke alarm alerted the occupants, 10 residents and 14 employees, and when firefighters responded to the call at 7:00 p.m. they found heavy smoke coming through the roof.
More than 50 firefighters from a variety of regional companies were on scene along with medical crews as multiple columns of smoke billowed out of the home and torrents of water poured out into the street.
At 8:15 p.m. Firefighters were still dragging hoses in through the front door to make an internal attack and Williams said they had difficulty reaching the fire because of poor access to the attic.
Everyone did make it out alive and an aid worker said no one had been injured in the fire.
The occupants were all evacuated safely and within the hour, Williams said the fire had mostly been contained.
The cause of the fire is still undetermined, but Williams said lightning was a possibility that is under investigation after a storm system moved through the area just before the fire broke out.
Sarah Grace, a student at Boyd Buchanan, said she was working out at a gym nearby when she noticed something was wrong.
"I looked out the window and saw everything was blurry. Then I stood up and realized something was on fire," she said. "Smoke was everywhere.
Another woman standing on scene, Deborah Becker, said she grew up in the home and her grandmother, Bonnie Richardson, started the residential nursing home several years ago.
She said the home served elderly women and her grandmother helped house them until her death in 1999. The business continued in its same capacity to today and Becker rushed over to see when she got word that a fire had started.
Standing in the driveway she said, "I came over here to make sure they got the ladies out. That was my concern."
Contact staff writer Emmett Gienapp at egienapp@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6731.