Christmas fire damages Mississippi apartments

Published 8:41 pm Monday, December 25, 2023

A fire that broke out just after 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve did not result in any injuries but heavily damaged a Vicksburg apartment complex.

Vicksburg Fire Chief Derrick Stamps said firefighters responded to the call at Urban Court apartments at 6:03 p.m. and found units 1010 G and H fully involved. Firefighters were able to enter through an adjacent unit, 1010 F, Stamps said, and contained the fire in around 30 minutes.

“We made entry into the left side (unit F) and went up through the ceiling and into the attic to prevent the fire spread,” Stamps said. “Once a fire gets into an attic, it just walks and burns everything.”

Subscribe to our free email newsletter

Get the latest news sent to your inbox

Stamps said the second adjacent unit, H, was vacant but was also fully involved, while other units only sustained smoke damage. Stamps also praised the responding firefighters for their ability to quickly squelch the blaze.

“They made an excellent stop tonight,” he said. “The firefighters are to be commended. They came in and did their due diligence and had it under control in 20-to-30 minutes.”

Stamps said the cause of the fire was not immediately evident, but added investigators were on the scene Sunday night and the fire remains under investigation.