Residents lost everything in Carriage Hill Apartments fire | News

A mother and child. A deployed soldier. Several Ohio University students.

They are among the 41 Carriage Hill Apartments residents who were affected by the fire that consumed Building 12 on Sunday afternoon. None of the residents lost their lives, but many of them lost everything else, including some pets.

Eliza Holdcroft Scott and her 12-year-old son, Andrew, lost all of their belongings to the fire. She wasn’t home when the fire started and found out about it on Facebook.

“I was on my way home from shopping with my parents and boyfriend in Belpre and I happened to look at Facebook,” she said, where she saw a post from her friend that talked about losing her car in a fire. Scott said it took her a moment to realize that her friend lived in the same apartment building as her.

“I sent her a private message asking her if it was her apartment and she then proceeded to tell me the whole building was going to go down,” Scott said.

She then realized her dog was still in the apartment and she begged her friend, Cherikee Ray, to save him. Scott said Ray made sure the firefighters knew to save Scott’s dog.

Scott stayed at a hotel Sunday night and will be staying with her mother for an additional few nights. She was issued a new apartment on Monday but she is still in need of furniture.

According to Kelly Stincer, a spokesperson for the Ohio Fire Marshal’s Office, the fire was determined to have started in the inner wall of Apartment 1213 behind a chair and was electrical in nature, where Ray lived with her two children.

Ray lost her cat, Veve, to the fire, although she believes Veve is possibly still alive somewhere and said she will continue to look for her pet.

Rumors surfaced the fire was started by a methamphetamine lab, which was ruled out by investigators. Ray said that Carriage Hill Apartments have a “name for drugs” because a meth lab allegedly caused an explosion there a year ago.

She also said that anyone who has spread the rumor should “not spread rumors about innocent people.”

Scott’s sister, Jennifer Young, started a GoFundMe page for Scott and Andrew.

“This money can help to rebuild her life once again,” Young wrote on the page. Young lists a winter coat for Andrew and “countless other items” as belongings that Scott needs replaced.

Young also explained on the page that her sister was provided money from the American Red Cross to stay in the hotel Sunday night, which many others who were displaced by the fire also received from the organization.

Tim Callahan, the disaster program manager for the American Red Cross of Southeast Ohio, said they are giving clients temporary assistance to buy clothing or food as well.

On Monday, the Red Cross was stationed at the 1804 Lounge on the fifth floor of Ohio University’s Baker Center to collect donations of food, clothing, toiletries and other items and provide them those who were displaced by the fire.

Callahan said the Red Cross has received “an overwhelming amount of help” from the community.

Other local businesses have been collecting and distributing donations as well, such as Wolf Tree Collective on East State Street in uptown Athens. Wolf Tree provided free coffee, tea, snacks and a space for families to hang out on Monday and will again on Wednesday and Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., according to a Facebook event.

The Facebook event also states that Wolf Tree is asking for “simple healthy food donations” such as apples, bananas, oranges, nuts, instant oatmeal and bagels or muffins. They are also looking for backpack donations and taking shoes and clothing that are “washed and ready to go.”

The Salvation Army is stationed at the Athens Community Center to collect and distribute donations including items for babies and children, food, clothing, household items, toiletries and furniture.

Local schools are also accepting donations, such as East Elementary, which is taking financial contributions and Walmart gift cards.

Other local businesses like Athens iPhone Repair are also accepting donations.

Callahan said he would like to coordinate with the other organizations to establish a main location for dropping off and picking up donations so that more resources can be provided in one spot. Organizations and people looking to either donate or pick up items can call the Red Cross’ Athens office at 740-593-5273.

A Facebook group titled “Carriage Hill Fire Donations” consists of several community members who are frequently updating the group with developments and needed donations. Several links GoFundMe pages for affected residents have been posted to the Facebook page as well.