No time for a house fire is convenient, but four days before a holiday to celebrate thankfulness makes it even worse. Unfortunately, that’s what several families at Raymonia Apartments in Vidalia are facing.

Vidalia Fire Chief Brian Sikes said just after noon on Sunday, the Fire Department was dispatched to the Building Number 5 of the apartment complex after a call came in from a person seeing smoke and flames billowing from the structure.

“We had to evacuate the entire building,” Chief Sikes said. “All 16 families are displaced now, and we know that seven of those families have children.”

He continued, “It was a massive undertaking to evacuate all the residents. It took police, fire, and EMS to do that while firefighters worked to put the fire out. We also called for mutual aid from the Lyons Fire Department who came and helped. It took a lot of water and a lot of manpower to put out the fire.”

Chief Sikes said the front and back side of the apartment complex is separated by a fire wall, but what dwellings weren't damaged by actual fire did suffer severe smoke and water damage.

Chief Sikes said the Red Cross and the United Way of Toombs, Montgomery, and Wheeler Counties found motels rooms for the displaced families to stay in temporarily.

The preliminary cause of the fire is believed to be an electrical shortage, but because the fire department had to return later Sunday for another fire in the same building, the State Fire Marshal’s Office will send an investigator to the scene on Tuesday to research further.

If you would like to help these families, contact the United Way of Toombs, Montgomery and Wheeler Counties at 912-537-2776.