A fire at a north Chattanooga apartment building was caused by an electric vehicle, according to the fire department.
Seven people had to be rescued early on Nov. 22 after several cars caught fire in the parking garage of a building on Frazier Avenue, the department said in a news release.
(READ MORE: Apartment building fire on Frazier Avenue sends 5 people to hospital)
“This is our first large-scale incident related to an electric vehicle,” spokesperson Lindsey Rogers said in the release.
Two other cars burned and most cars in the garage sustained heat damage, Rogers said. Businesses and apartments in the building above were also damaged by smoke, according to the department.
Five people were taken to a hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation and were later released, officials said.
Firefighters responded to the building, which houses a dental office, bridal boutique and Portuguese restaurant, around 1:30 a.m. on Nov. 22.
Crews had to help apartment residents and their pets escape, some via a ladder extended to the building’s fourth floor and some via the building’s back staircase.
— Compiled by Ellen Gerst